ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Buildings

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Attorney-General who owns the buildings in which the staff of the Treasury Solicitor's Department are based; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Garnier: One Kemble Street is owned by TS Kingsway Investments S.A.R.L. of Tishmann Speyer Properties UK Ltd 61 Aldwych 6th Floor London WC2B 4AE.
	Southern House Croydon—of which part of a floor is leased by TSol—is owned by Whittles Properties Croydon Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of BRB (Residuary) Limited ("BRBR") of Whittles House, 14 Pentonville Road, London N1 9HF.

Buildings

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Attorney-General what recent value-for-money assessment he has made of the location of the Treasury Solicitor's Department; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Garnier: TSol has occupied its headquarters at One Kemble Street since 2005, HM Treasury having approved a business case for a move to this location in 2003. It is within a convenient distance of most of TSol's clients, the Royal Courts of Justice and the Inns of Court.
	As a cost reduction measure, in 2009-10 TSol introduced arrangements for more efficient use of working space. This enabled TSol to sub-let three floors of One Kemble Street to public sector tenants, realising an annual saving of £1.5 million on estate costs.
	A rent review has just been concluded resulting in no increase in rent.

Crown Prosecution Service

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Attorney-General how much funding he allocated to the (a) Crown Prosecution Service, (b) Serious Fraud Office and (c) Treasury Solicitor's Department in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Grieve: The information requested is contained in the following tables.
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSOL) (1) 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Total Resource Funding 12.946 11.976 11.976 
		
	
	
		
			 Capital Funding 3.610 1.800 1.800 
			 (1) The funding allocated via the spending review process for the Treasury Solicitor's Department also covers the Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate. 
		
	
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 2010- 11 2011- 12 2012- 13 
			 Total Resource Funding 629.10 620.89 592.48 
			 Capital Funding 5.10 2.62 2.70 
		
	
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Serious Fraud Office 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Total Resource Funding 36.931 33.859 32.130 
			 Capital Funding 3.100 1.580 1.600

Crown Prosecution Service

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Attorney-General how many full-time equivalent staff were employed in the (a) Crown Prosecution Service, (b) Serious Fraud Office and (c) Treasury Solicitor's Department in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12; how many he expects to be employed in each such organisation in 2012-13; and if he will make a statement.

Dominic Grieve: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Full-time staff equivalent (FTE) employed 
			 Department 2010-11 average number FTE during the year 2011-12 approximate average number FTE as of 31 December 2011 2012-13 estimated number of FTE staff for the year 
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol) 947 1,005 1,014 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 8,094 7,454 7,049 
			 Serious Fraud Office 317 (1)300 358 
			 (1) FTE staff actually in post as of 31 December 2011. 
		
	
	The figures for 2012-13 are projections based on existing departmental budgets and forecast business requirements but may be subject to future change.
	The DEFRA legal team became part of TSol in June 2011 resulting in an increase in staff numbers from that date.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices: Devon

Anne-Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many employers in (a) Newton Abbot constituency and (b) Devon have received payments to take on their first young apprentice under the Government's incentive scheme.

John Hayes: The Apprenticeship programme is demand led and take-up of apprenticeships by area depends on employer demand. We are therefore unable to provide estimates of the geographical distribution of those companies which will benefit from the incentive payments which the Government announced in November.
	Nationally we plan to make 40,000 incentive payments available for small companies who are not currently engaged in the Apprenticeships programme who take on their first apprentices aged 16-24. The National Apprenticeship Service is currently working up a detailed delivery plan and companies will be able to benefit by April this year.

Apprentices: Yorkshire and the Humber

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) men and (b) women enrolled in apprenticeships in (i) information and communication technology and (ii) engineering and manufacturing technology in (A) Haltemprice and Howden constituency, (B) East Yorkshire and (C) the Humberside region in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Hayes: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship starts by gender in Information and Communication Technology, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies and all Sector Subject Areas in the Yorkshire and the Humber region, East Riding of Yorkshire local authority and Haltemprice and Howden parliamentary constituency, in the 2010/11 academic year, based on provisional data. Data are based on the home postcode of the learner.
	
		
			 Table 1: Apprenticeship starts by gender and sector subject area in Haltemprice and Howden parliamentary constituency, East Riding of Yorkshire local authority and the Yorkshire and the Humber region, 2010/11 (provisional data) 
			   Information and Communication Technology Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies All apprenticeships 
			 Haltemprice and Howden constituency Female 10 — 390 
			  Male 10 90 320 
			  Total 20 90 710 
			      
			 East Riding of Yorkshire local authority Female 80 140 1,890 
			  Male 260 1,730 3,480 
			  Total 340 1,870 5,360 
			      
			 Yorkshire and the Humber region Female 390 410 28,900 
			  Male 2,370 6,420 25,020 
			  Total 2,760 6,840 53,920 
			 Notes: 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Total figures may not add up due to rounding. 2. Geography information is based upon the home postcode of the learner. Source: Individualised Learner Record 
		
	
	Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly Statistical First Release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 27 October 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current
	Information on apprenticeship starts by geographic breakdown, gender and sector subject areas are available in the SFR Supplementary Tables:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_supplementary_tables/Apprenticeship_sfr_supplementary_tables/

Business: Billing

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effect of late payments by (a) the public sector and (b) other creditors on small businesses; and how many such businesses he estimates have become insolvent as a result of late payment by creditors in the latest period for which figures are available.

Mark Prisk: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) collects information from small businesses via the SME Business Barometer, a regular survey of around 500 SME employers, which includes information relating to the effect of late payments. In the latest survey (August 2011), late payment from other businesses and individual customers was the second most common cause of cashflow difficulties (cited by 58% of businesses). This is particularly problematic in the construction industry, where 80% of SMEs viewed late payment from individuals as a cause of cashflow difficulty.
	Of the SMEs that offered credit to customers, 21% said that late payment was a big problem, while 35% said it was not a problem. Again, SMEs in the construction sector were more likely to regard late payment as problematic.
	In relation to payments from central Government, 39% of SMEs said they were paid slowly, an increase of 17 percentage points since the last barometer in February, with 43% of SMEs saying that they are usually paid later than 30 days after the receipt of the invoice.
	Within the public sector, we are establishing central Government sector as a payment exemplar with a commitment that central Departments pay 80% of invoices within five days and that main suppliers must pay contractors within 30 days. We require tier 1 contractors (holding public sector contracts) to pay tier 2 suppliers within 30 days by means of a contract condition, and Crown representatives will strongly encourage them to pay more quickly than 30 days, to ensure the benefits of prompt payment are felt through the supply chain. Suppliers and subcontractors working on Government contracts can report instances of late payment to the Mystery Shopper service:
	supplierfeedbackservice@cabinet-office.gsi.gov.uk
	BIS achieved 95.5% 30 day payment rate in November 2011.
	Statistics covering corporate insolvencies for England and Wales do not differentiate by firm size nor by reason(s) for failure. Therefore it is not possible to estimate from official statistics, how many small businesses have become insolvent as a result of late payments. BIS has not commissioned any specific research into this issue.

Ceramics: Industry

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department provides to the ceramics industry; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: The ceramics industry has access to the full range of Government support available which includes Business Link, the Manufacturing Advisory Service, the Regional Growth Fund and the Technology Strategy Board.
	As part of the Autumn Statement, we announced a package that will reduce the impact of energy and climate change policies on the cost of electricity for those energy intensive industries, such as ceramics, whose international competitiveness is most affected by these policies. This package of measures will be worth around £250 million to Energy Intensive Industries to reduce their energy bills, subject to state aid approval,
	In addition, there will be investment available for commercial and industrial energy efficiency projects through the Green Investment Bank, and on 6 December we launched a £125 million challenge fund to boost UK advanced manufacturing supply chains. Both of these schemes will be open to bids from the ceramics industry.

Further Education: Part-time Education

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to ensure that all access and foundation courses are available on a part-time basis.

David Willetts: It is for individual institutions, as autonomous bodies, to determine the mix of courses and modes of study they offer based on learner demand and their own context, circumstances and individual missions.
	Many access and foundation courses are now provided on a part-time basis in both further and higher education institutions, and provision is increasingly being made available in flexible and innovative ways.

Higher Education: Admissions

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people applied to study at UK universities in each parliamentary constituency in 2011.

David Willetts: The information has been provided by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) and is shown in a table which will be placed in the Library of the House.

Higher Education: Admissions

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what criteria will be applied by the Office for Fair Access when allocating the additional 20,000 places to institutions.

David Willetts: The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) are responsible for allocating government funded places in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in England. Bids from HEIs for places from a competitive margin of 20,000 for the academic year 2012-13, are currently being assessed by HEFCE against three criteria: demand; quality and average fee. Guidance about the bidding process is published on the HEFCE website at:
	http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2011/11_30/

Office for Fair Access

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what consideration he has given to allowing student representatives to sit on the board of the Office of Fair Access.

David Willetts: The Office for Fair Access does not have a board.
	The Director of Fair Access does, however, have a small advisory group. The members of this group are Aaron Porter, a past President of the National Union of Students; Dr John Selby, previously Director of Widening Participation at the Higher Education Funding Council for England; and Dr Lee Elliott Major, Research Director at the Sutton Trust. The membership and remit of this group is a matter for the Director himself.
	In his guidance to institutions on access agreements published in March 2011, the Director said that he expected that institutions would want to consult prospective and current students when developing and revising their access agreements. He recognised that many institutions already consulted their student unions.

Regional Growth Fund: Longbridge

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made on discussions on the Longbridge Regional Growth Fund bid.

Mark Prisk: The Longbridge Regional Growth Fund bid has been considered by the Ministerial Panel who asked officials to discuss aspects of the application with the applicants. These discussions are progressing well and we hope to be in a position to agree support in outline by the end of January. In parallel officials have commenced discussion with the applicant on the Grant Offer Letter which will specify the conditions which apply to the Regional Growth Fund support.

Shareholders

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the balance between the voting power of institutional investors and individual shareholders of companies listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Edward Davey: The latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that institutional investors hold a large proportion of shares in UK listed companies, relative to individual shareholders. Whereas institutions hold 40% of UK shares, individuals own only 10%.
	Note
	The definition used for institutional shareholders includes insurance companies, pension funds, unit trusts, investment trusts and ‘other financial institutions’.

Shell

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the announcement on 16 January 2012 of the proposed closure of the Shell Technology Centre in Thornton, what discussions he has had with Shell management on retaining its research and development capability in the UK.

David Willetts: Following the announcement of the closure of the site at Thornton, Shell have reaffirmed to officials at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, their commitment to maintaining their research and development profile in the UK and are relocating the remaining 280 product development jobs at Thornton to London and Manchester. Their continued research and development activity in the UK includes research partnerships with a number of UK universities and a partnership with the Energy Technologies Institute on projects to address future energy challenges.

Shell

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the announcement on 16 January 2012 of the proposed closure of the Shell Technology Centre in Thornton, what assessment he has made of the UK's attractiveness as a location to undertake research and development.

David Willetts: The Government are committed to ensure that we maintain and strengthen the UK's position as one of the most innovative economies in the world. We are absolutely determined to create the right conditions for business investment and growth in research and development and innovation, and we believe that international companies will be keen to take advantage of these conditions.
	The latest available Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data shows that in 2009 22% of UK Business Enterprise R&D (BERD) expenditure was financed from abroad. This is more than double the prevailing EU average, and higher than every other country in the OECD database.
	In absolute terms, data are not available for more recent years. In 2007 $5.6 million of BERD expenditure in the UK was financed from abroad. This compared to $2.6 million in France in 2007 and $1.6 million in Germany in 2006.

Shell

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the announcement on 16 January 2012 of the proposed closure of the Shell Technology Centre in Thornton, if he will take steps to improve the UK's attractiveness as a location to undertake research and development.

David Willetts: The Government are committed to ensure that we maintain and strengthen the UK's position as one of the most innovative economies in the world. We are absolutely determined to create the right conditions for business investment and growth in research and development and innovation, and we believe that international companies will be keen to take advantage of these conditions.
	To deliver on this we have focused on: creating the most competitive tax system in the G20 by cutting the main rate of corporation tax from 28% to 26% in April and by 2014 it will reach 23%--the lowest rate in the G7 and 5(th) lowest in the G20; making the UK the best place in Europe to start, finance and grow a business.
	The Government also have a range of policies supporting R and D including significant financial support for business investment, a supportive tax regime; a regulatory regime that is business friendly and modern infrastructure that enables the UK to be internationally competitive.
	The recently-published (December 2011) Innovation and Research Strategy for Growth builds on the UK's recognised strengths and sets out how the Government will work with business and the knowledge base to underpin private sector-led growth.
	For example, through the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) we will invest over £1 billion in business-led R and D over the current spending review period. By matching these public sector investments with UK and UK-based business, the TSB will have generated a £2 billion programme of investment in innovation in the period to 2011-15.
	We will continue to support investment in high-technology sectors. Over £200 million will be invested through the TSB to establish a network of elite technology and innovation centres, now branded as Catapults. These will commercialise new and emerging technologies in areas where there are large global market opportunities and a critical mass of UK capability to take advantage.
	We have also made significant improvements to the R and D tax credit. The rate for the SME scheme will increase to 225% from April, making it one of the most attractive such schemes in the world. We will also encourage large company research and development by making the R and D tax credit 'above the line' from April 2013.

CABINET OFFICE

Charities

David Morris: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he is taking to ensure that financial needs of charities are considered when establishing a transforming local infrastructure initiative.

Nick Hurd: Through the Transforming Local Infrastructure fund, the Office for Civil Society is making up to £30 million available so that infrastructure organisations are able to provide better support for frontline civil society organisations.
	Many of the successful applicants will have a strong emphasis on helping charities to address their financial needs. This will include through supporting fundraising, collaborative working with local business, and providing better training to allow frontline civil society organisations to become more financially astute, such as through better governance and management.

Charities: Closures

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many charities have closed or deregistered with the Charity Commission since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Hurd: This is a matter for the Charity Commission. I have, therefore, asked the Commission's chief executive to reply.
	Letter from Nick Allaway, dated 19 January 2012
	.
	13,517 charities have been removed from the Register of Charities since 1 May 2010. Charities are removed from the Register for a variety of reasons. For example, a charity may have ceased to exist or operate, or may have merged, incorporated or transferred its funds to another charity.

Charities: Regulation

David Morris: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he is taking to ensure that any regulatory burdens associated with the operation of the Charities Commission are not passed on to the voluntary sector.

Nick Hurd: In December 2011 the Charity Commission published a strategic plan, setting out how it will respond to the challenge of a reducing budget over the coming years and I am arranging for a copy to be placed in the House Library. The Commission will have a reduced role, while prioritising its core regulatory functions. In all its work, the Commission will encourage charity trustees to take their own decisions as far as possible.
	In November 2011, the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), appointed my noble Friend the Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts to review the legal and regulatory framework for charities. The review will consider the role and status of the Charity Commission as the sector's regulator. It will also look at reducing the burden of regulation while preserving safeguards that protect the public interest. The review is expected to conclude this summer and a report of its findings will be published and laid in Parliament.

Childbirth

David Davis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the birth rate was in (a) Haltemprice and Howden constituency, (b) East Yorkshire, (c) the Humberside region and (d) nationally in the latest period for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the birth rate was in (a) Haltemprice and Howden constituency, (b) East Yorkshire, (c) the Humberside region and (d) nationally in the latest period for which figures are available. 91058
	The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has been supplied as this is the most useful measure of an area's fertility level. The TFR is the average number of live children that a group of women would each bear if they experienced the age-specific fertility rates of the calendar year in question throughout their childbearing lifespan.
	
		
			 Total fertility rate (TFR), selected areas, 2010 
			 Area TFR 
			 (a) Haltemprice and Howden constituency 1.75 
			 (b) East Yorkshire constituency 2.02 
			 (c) Yorkshire and Humberside region 1.89 
			 (d) England and Wales 2.00

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment he has made of variations in the levels of subjective well-being in (a) adult males, (b) adult females, (c) male children and (d) female children.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck dated January 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the what assessment has been made of variations in the levels of subjective well-being in a) adult males, b) adult females, c) male children and d) female children (90876).
	On 1 December 2011, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published a research report entitled ‘Initial investigation into Subjective Well-being from the Opinions Survey’ which is available from the following weblink:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/wellbeing/measuring-subjective-wellbeing-in-the-uk/investigation-of-subjective-well-being-data-from-the-ons-opinions-survey/initial-investigation-into-subjective-well-being-from-the-opinions-survey.html
	This report provides initial experimental estimates from the ONS Opinions Survey.
	Table 1 provides comparisons of the average levels of subjective well-being for adult men and women aged 16 and over between April and August 2011 in Great Britain. As with any sample survey, estimates from the Opinions Survey are subject to sampling variability. Our assessment is that the differences between men and women's average ratings are small and the only difference that is statistically significant (at the 5 per cent level) is for the question that asks about the extent to which people feel that the things they do in their lives are worthwhile.
	The ONS is working with a range of stakeholders, including other government departments and from the third sector to develop well-being measures for children and young people as part of the overall measuring National Well-being Programme.
	
		
			 Table 1: Average (mean) subjective well-being ratings: by sex (1) , Great Britain—April to August 2011 
			 0 to 10 scale (2) 
			  Life satisfaction (3) Worthwhile (4) Happy yesterday (5) Anxious yesterday (6) 
			 Men 7.3 7.5 7.3 3.3 
			 Women 7.5 7.8 7.5 3.6 
			 All 7.4 7.6 7.4 3.4 
		
	
	
		
			 (1) Adults aged 16 and over. (2) Respondents are asked to provide an answer from 0 (‘not at all’) to 10 (‘completely’) for each question. (3) Overall, how satisfied are you with your life nowadays? (4) Overall, to what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are worthwhile? (5) Overall, how happy did you feel yesterday? (6) Overall, how anxious did you feel yesterday? Source: April, June, July and August 2011 Opinions Surveys, ONS

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which UK (a) mindfulness and wellbeing research centres and (b) universities he (i) visited and (ii) corresponded with in developing the Wellbeing Index.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking which UK (a) mindfulness and wellbeing research centres and (b) universities have been (i) visited and (ii) corresponded with in developing the Wellbeing Index. (90883)
	The ONS Measuring National Well-being Programme, led by the National Statistician, aims to develop and publish an accepted and trusted set of National Statistics to help people understand and monitor national well-being. National well-being is more than the sum of individual happiness or individual well-being. To measure national well-being we are capturing the quality of our lives, of which happiness is a part, but also the country's economic performance and environmental and sustainability issues.
	The programme is underpinned by a communication and engagement workstream, providing links with Cabinet Office and policy departments, international organisations, the public and other stakeholders. The programme started with a national debate, receiving 34,000 responses, including a number of experts such as academics and research organisations. ONS also held 175 events around the UK, where members of the public joined in at live debates and round table discussions. Further details of the events held, organisations who responded and technical submissions received are available in the supplementary paper "Findings from the National Well-being Debate":
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/well-being/wellbeing-knowledge-bank/understanding-wellbeing/well-being-reports-and-articles.html
	The programme is supported by a Technical Advisory Group and a Well-being Advisory Forum, both of which have members from the academic and research communities, full membership lists are available here:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/well-being/index.html
	ONS are currently in the middle of a targeted three month formal consultation, on a draft set of domains and measures. It began on 31 October 2011 and will close on 23 January 2012. The consultation is available on-line:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/about-ons/consultations/open-consultations/measuring-national-well-being/index.html
	ONS will continue to engage with organisations, policy makers, academic/expert leads, think tanks, third-sector, business and interested others to get their views. This will ensure that UK well-being measures are relevant and impartial and improve our understanding of the UK's society.

Members: Correspondence

John Baron: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when he plans to reply to the letters of 31 October and 5 December 2011 from the hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay regarding a constituent, Miss Helmi Okpara.

Mark Harper: I replied to the hon. Member's letters on 19 January 2012.

Perinatal Mortality

David Davis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the perinatal mortality rate was for children in (a) Haltemprice and Howden constituency, (b) East Yorkshire, (c) the Humberside region and (d) nationally in the latest period for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2012
	.
	The latest available figures for perinatal mortality are for the year 2010. The following table provides the perinatal mortality rates for East Riding of Yorkshire unitary authority, Yorkshire and the Humber region and England and Wales in 2010.
	Annual sub-national data on the number of deaths registered in England and Wales is available on the Office for National Statistics website at:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/all-releases.html?definition=tcm%3A77-27478
	Figures for perinatal mortality for East Riding of Yorkshire unitary authority and Yorkshire and the Humber region in 2010 can be found in table 1a of the linked publication.
	Perinatal mortality rates for the Haltemprice and Howden parliamentary constituency have not been given in line with the current ONS policy on protecting confidentiality within birth and death statistics, available at:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/best-practice/disclosure-control-policy-for-birth-and-death-statistics/index.html
	
		
			 Table 1. Perinatal mortality rates (1)  with 95% confidence limits (2 ) for East Riding of Yorkshire unitary authority, Yorkshire and the Humber region and England and Wales (3) ,2010 
			   95% confidence limits 
			  Perinatal mortality rate Lower limit Upper limit 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 9.3 6.2 13.4 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 8.5 7.8 9.2 
			 England and Wales 7.4 7.2 7.6 
			 (1) Perinatal deaths per 1,000 live births and stillbirths. (2) Confidence intervals are a measure of the statistical precision of an estimate and show the range of uncertainty around the estimated figure. Calculations based on small numbers of events are often subject to random fluctuations. As a general rule, if the confidence interval around one figure overlaps with the interval around another, we cannot say with certainty that there is more than a chance difference between the two figures. (3) Figures are based on boundaries as of 2011. Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents, figures for East Riding of Yorkshire unitary authority, Yorkshire and the Humber region are for deaths of babies usually resident in those areas.

Personal Savings

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate he has made of the average level of (a) household and (b) personal savings.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what recent estimates have been made of the average level of (a) household and (b) personal savings (90421).
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) does not specifically publish the estimates you request. However, estimates from the Wealth and Assets Survey (WAS) can provide some related estimates. WAS provides estimates of total financial wealth of private households in Great Britain. Gross financial wealth includes formal and informal financial assets of adults, children's assets, and endowments for the purpose of mortgage repayments. Details of financial liabilities is also collected and subtracted from gross financial wealth to produce estimates of net financial wealth.
	At present only data relating to 2006/08 are available, equivalent data for 2008/10 are due to be published in May 2012.
	
		
			 Household financial wealth (1) :S ummary statistics Great Britain 2006-08 
			 £ 
			  Mean Median 
			 Those with financial wealth (1)   
			 Gross financial wealth 45,900 8,600 
			 Financial liabilities 7,200 2,700 
			 Net financial wealth 40,800 5,700 
			 Whole population   
			 Gross financial wealth 43,500 7,200 
			 Net financial wealth 40,000 5,200 
			 (1) Excludes households without this type of asset or liability (zeros). Source: Wealth and Assets Survey Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	These data are taken from Chapter 4 of the Wealth in Great Britain, 2006/08 report, where more detailed figures are also available.
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/was/wealth-in-great-britain/main-results-from-the-wealth-and-assets-survey-2006-2008/report--wealth-in-great-britain-.pdf
	No data have currently been published on individual wealth from this source. More recent data on total financial assets held by households and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISH) are available from the United Kingdom Economic Accounts. In 2011 quarter 3, the latest period for which data are available, the total level of financial assets (excluding insurance technical reserves) held by households and NPISH was £1,994.7 billion.
	The coverage of this data differs in a number of respects from that shown above from the Wealth and Assets Survey. In particular, this figure includes asset holdings by bodies such as charities, universities, trades union and political and faith based institutions which are classified to the NPISH sector, and these are not separately identified from the asset holdings of households. It is therefore not possible to provide an estimate of total financial assets on a per household basis.
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/naa1-rd/united-kingdom-economic-accounts/q3-2011/index.html

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, how many apprentices are employed by the Church Commissioners.

Tony Baldry: There are no apprentices currently employed by the Church Commissioners or the Church of England.
	However, the Church does provide a space for long-term employment and opportunities for skilled professionals and their students to undertake apprenticeships, training, or conservation work on and within its buildings, stone/carpentry yards and stained glass workshops choir and organ schools.

Church Commissioners: Anniversaries

Mark Pritchard: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners whether the Church Commissioners plan to discuss with the House of Bishops the preparation of events to mark the 350th anniversary of the Book of Common Prayer in 2012.

Tony Baldry: The Prayer Book Society will be coordinating many of the events during 2012 to celebrate the 350(th) anniversary of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer and Lambeth Palace Library will be holding another of their summer exhibitions this year, the subject of which will be the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. Other events will be announced throughout the year and local churches and Cathedrals are being encouraged to take part in the celebrations.

Church of England Rural Affairs Committee

Anne McIntosh: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, when he last attended a meeting of the Church of England Rural Affairs Committee; what assessment he has made of its work; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Baldry: I have not yet attended a meeting of the Rural Affairs Group, but I am regularly briefed on its work.
	The Rural Affairs Group of the General Synod is a sub-group of the Mission and Public Affairs Council of the Archbishops’ Council. It is chaired by the Bishop of Knaresborough and meets three times each year.
	The group aims to assist other departments of the Archbishops’ Council to understand and address the needs of rural parishes; primarily the Ministry Division, the Cathedral and Church Buildings Division and the Education Division. The Rural Affairs Group also organises information and briefing meetings on rural issues at General Synod.
	In the last six months the group's work has focused on: Bovine TB, the National Planning Policy Framework, the consultation on the Rural Communities Policy Unit within DEFRA, resourcing and training for the rural church, the future of rural primary schools, global food and farming issues, CAP reform and pastoral ministry in rural areas.

Churches: Repairs and Maintenance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what discussions there were at the last General Synod of the Church of England on progress on repairs to Church of England churches.

Tony Baldry: The Church of England estimates its 16,000 parish church buildings, 12,500 of which are listed, face annual repair bills totalling £178.5 million. The Church further estimates that over £50 million of these repairs are not undertaken.
	The Government’s financial support amounts to the Church of England’s share of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme 71% of £12 million or £8.5 million and a similar share of the Heritage Lottery Fund’s £25 million annual fund for high level repairs to church buildings. Even though the Church of England’s 12,500 listed church buildings remain he most significant and remarkable group of listed buildings in the country, the balance of the costs has to be found by the parishes themselves.

Churches: Repairs and Maintenance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what discussions the Church Commissioners have had with Ministers on the continuation of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; and what progress has been made in those discussions.

Tony Baldry: There were no discussions at the last meeting of the General Synod in July 2011 about the progress on repairs to churches. The Church of England's Cathedrals and Church Buildings Division estimates its 16,000 parish church buildings, 12,500 of which are listed, face annual repair bills totalling £178.5 million. It further estimates that over £50 million of these repairs are not undertaken. Financial support from the Government amounts to the Church of England’s share of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme: 71% of £12 million, or £8.5 million, and a similar share of the Heritage Lottery Fund’s £25 million annual fund for high level repairs to church buildings. The balance of the costs has to be found by the parishes themselves.

Churches: Rural Areas

Anne McIntosh: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church Commissioners plan to take to assist rural parishes; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Baldry: The Church Commissioners' parish mission and ministry support (£46.8 million in 2010) is targeted on areas of greatest need and opportunity rather than specifically at urban or rural areas. The majority of this is in the form of grants to lower income dioceses who in turn make the decisions about the deployment of funds locally.
	There are two more 'deliberate' funding streams, i.e. those which support mission development and church development in new housing and other development areas. Both of these to a greater or lesser extent will benefit rural and urban settings but, again, that is not a specific funding criterion. The Church Commissioners other, untargeted funds, play a part in helping the Church maintain a presence in every part of the nation regardless of relative local resources and parishes in less populous, rural areas will sometimes rely more heavily on this than others. It should be remembered that, overall, the CofE is largely self-funding.
	The Church of England also has a network of Diocesan Rural officers, and a National Rural Officer who assist with development of the mission and worship of rural churches through the provision of advice, training and resources.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to produce new guidance for local authorities on Gypsy and Traveller sites.

Bob Neill: We are considering the responses to the consultation on our draft planning policy for Traveller sites and intend to publish the new policy as soon as possible. In the mean-time, decision makers are entitled to have regard to the fact that it is proposed to withdraw the circulars and replace them with the Government's draft new policy.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Arts

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the value of the creative industries to the economy in terms of (a) gross domestic product contribution, (b) growth and (c) jobs.

Edward Vaizey: The latest ‘Creative Industries Economic Estimates’ bulletin was released in December 2011, in which the contribution to the economy of the creative industries is estimated covering gross value added (GVA), employment, exports in services and number of businesses.
	The creative industries as a whole were estimated to contribute £36.3 billion, or 2.9%, to the UK's GVA in 2009.
	Relative to the UK's total GVA, the creative industries GVA has increased by 0.07% in 2009 (from 2.82% in 2008), but in absolute terms the GVA reduced by 1% from 2008 (£36.6 billion to £36.3 billion). Due to changes in the data source's methodology, growth cannot be estimated prior to 2008.
	1.50 million people are employed in either the Creative Industries or in a creative role in another industry (5.14% of UK employment). This is a small increase on 2008 (1.44 million employed and 4.99% of UK employment).
	The full creative industries economic estimates statistical release is available on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/publications/8682.aspx

Diamond Jubilee 2012: Voluntary Organisations

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he expects to make an announcement on the award for outstanding voluntary organisations during the diamond jubilee year.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	I expect to make an announcement by the end of February 2012.

Digital Broadcasting

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to encourage licensed use of programme making and special events equipment after digital switchover; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The matter raised is an operational one for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Accordingly, my officials spoke to Ofcom, who advised:
	“The Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 prohibits the installation or use of wireless telegraphy equipment unless an appropriate licence has been obtained from Ofcom. For programme making and special events (PMSE) JFMG, who issue Wireless Telegraphy Act licences on Ofcom's behalf, are actively issuing licences in Channel 38. The funding scheme for channel 69 has provided a substantial contribution to the cost of migration to channel 38 to licensed users only. JFMG continue to make information available on our behalf on the licence options for PMSE users.”

EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport which EU regulations his Department has not implemented; on what date the regulations became EU law; and if he will make a statement.

John Penrose: The Commission Decision of 10 October 2011 (Decision 2011/667/EU) on modalities for co-ordinated application of the rules on enforcement, with regard to mobile satellite services (MSS), is currently being considered by the Department. It may require the amendment of the Authorisation of Frequency Use for the Provision of MSS (European Union) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/672), which implement the previous Decisions in relation to MSS. No decisions as to whether UK legislation must be amended have yet been taken, and therefore I am unable to provide an estimate of the cost to the public purse and the private sector. The Decision came into force on 10 October 2011.
	I am not aware of any other EU legislation currently requiring transposition for which my Department is responsible.

Ofcom

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with Ofcom on the use of white space devices; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The matter raised is an operational one for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Accordingly, my officials spoke to Ofcom, who advised:
	“Ofcom is in the process of developing regulations to enable white space devices to operate in the Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) TV band without causing harmful interference to existing services. Existing services include digital terrestrial television and wireless microphones used in the programme making and special events. Ofcom is working with stakeholders to finalise the necessary regulations which we aim to be in place by the end of 2012.”

Ofcom

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions his Department has had with Ofcom on the future use of 700MHz band; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The matter raised is an operational one for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Accordingly, my officials spoke to Ofcom, who advised:
	Ofcom has had early discussions with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on the potential implications of the future European harmonisation of the 700 MHz band for mobile broadband use. Ofcom intends to issue a consultation on this matter during the first half of 2012.

Radio Frequencies: Audio Equipment

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent assessment he has made of the effect on (a) the availability of, (b) the market for and (c) the price of radio microphones and similar technologies following the sale of channels 31 to 37 and 61 to 69; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The matter raised is an operational one for the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Accordingly, my officials spoke to Ofcom, who advised:
	“While Ofcom makes spectrum available, the supply of physical equipment (as in other sectors) is a matter for the commercial sector. No assessment has been made of the availability, market for, or price of wireless microphones. There are a number of competing suppliers of programme making and special event's (PMSE) equipment active in the UK, who have been kept informed in a timely manner throughout the digital switchover process so that decisions on market demand and equipment can be made.”

Telephones

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to reduce the incidence of vulnerable people unnecessarily making lengthy calls to premium rate telephone numbers.

Edward Vaizey: Ofcom has responsibility and accountability for the regulation of premium rate services (PRS), under the terms of the Communications Act 2003, and has designated PhonepayPlus to deliver the day-to-day regulation of PRS. Consumers, including those who are vulnerable, are protected through their code of practice, which includes rules on the presentation of the cost of calling, minimum font size and position of pricing information. The maximum penalty for a single breach of their code is £250,000. All PRS providers are required to comply and PhonepayPlus has regularly used its powers to disconnect service providers, including barring them. Where services might be causing substantial harm to consumers, including groups such as children, PhonepayPlus has an emergency procedure, which enables them to urgently investigate and shut down services. It also has a website:
	http://www.phonebrain.org.uk
	aimed specifically at young people to educate them about the costs involved and where to go if they have a problem.

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much funding his Department provided to (a) The Art Room, (b) the National Portrait Gallery, (c) Mountain Rescue England, (d) the English Schools Swimming Association, (e) the Scout Association and (f) Missing Links UK in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: This Department has provided grant in aid funding of £7.577 million in 2010-11 and £7.398 million in 2011-12 to the National Portrait Gallery. It has not directly funded any other organisations on this list.

Tourism: Northumberland

Guy Opperman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what (a) support he is providing to encourage and (b) assessment he has made of opportunities for rural tourism in Northumberland.

John Penrose: The recently announced Regional Growth Fund Project, ‘Growing Tourism Locally,’ which is managed and coordinated by the National Tourist Board, VisitEngland, will aim to stimulate increased visitor spend across England, particularly in areas that are facing challenging economic times, but which have tourism growth potential. Northumberland is one of the areas which will benefit from this project.
	Last November, the Government also announced that they would invest £25 million in promoting and developing rural tourism. VisitEngland is working with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Natural England on rural economic growth, in particular, opportunities made available through the Rural Development Programme England for areas such as Northumberland.
	In addition, the Government recently announced a major initiative to support both international and domestic tourism promotion. Including money from the GREAT campaign and private sector support, VisitBritain will invest around £127 million in a new international marketing programme. Over the next four years, this is expected to deliver 4.6 million extra visitors from overseas, £2.27 billion in extra visitor spend and over 50,000 job opportunities. VisitEngland’s domestic campaign is supported by a £4 million investment from the Olympic budget and is expected to deliver around 12,500 new job opportunities and £500 million in extra visitor spend over three years. This promotion will include an invitation to the industry to join up in a 20.12% special offer incentive for consumers, which will be launched later this year.

DEFENCE

Defence Equipment: Repairs and Maintenance

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to prevent corrosion in its (a) weapons, (b) fleets of ships and vehicles and (c) infrastructure.

Peter Luff: There is no single policy to counter corrosion of Defence equipment infrastructure assets. Corrosion prevention is included, where applicable, as a manufacturing requirement in Defence contracts. Extensive trials and testing for corrosion protection will also be undertaken where appropriate, prior to an equipment entering service.
	For in-service equipment and infrastructure, the requirements for corrosion protection and ongoing maintenance are detailed in a wide range of publications including Technical Bulletins, Joint Service Publications, Defence Standards and NATO Standardisation Agreements. These may take into account the environment in which a particular equipment type may be deployed and cover all aspects of corrosion prevention including the use of protective coatings, inspection and maintenance regimes, methods of packaging and storage to be used. Corrosion prevention measures which may be deployed range from cathodic (electrolytic) prevention and the application of specialised anti-corrosive paints, to simply covering equipment when not in use, to protect against the corrosive forces of nature.

EDUCATION

Academies

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reasons officials from his Department are visiting schools in connection with academy status; and under which criteria such visits are being made.

Nick Gibb: Department for Education officials visit schools in connection with Academy status for a wide range of reasons; this includes to support those schools considering, or in the process of becoming Academies and to support and broker Academy solutions for those schools that have a history of results below the National Floor Standards, or are in an Ofsted category.

Contact Orders: Grandparents

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans his Department has to change the process by which grandparents can gain access to any of their grandchildren to whom they have no access.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 16 January 2012 
	The Government will shortly publish their response to the Family Justice Review which considered a range of important issues including how families make contact arrangements after separation. The Government response will set out how we plan to take forward policy proposals for reforming the family justice system so that it better serves children and families involved with proceedings.

EU Law

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which EU (a) Directives, (b) Regulations and (c) other legislation affecting his Department require transposition into UK law; and what estimate he has made of the cost to (i) the public purse and (ii) the private sector of such measures.

Tim Loughton: The Department for Education is not responsible for implementing any EU legislation which currently requires transposition into UK law. The Department has not, therefore, made an estimate of the cost of this legislation for the public purse or private sector.

EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department holds information on the EU regulations in its policy areas of responsibility which have not been implemented in (a) France and (b) Germany; on which dates those regulations became EU law; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The Department holds no such information in respect of implementation of EU regulations in France or Germany.

EU Law

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which EU regulations his Department has not implemented; on what date the regulations became EU law; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: There are no EU regulations in force for which the Department for Education has lead responsibility and which have not been implemented.

Free School Meals

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what happens to the funding allocated for free school meals within a local authority area that is unclaimed by pupils.

Nick Gibb: Local authorities do not receive specified funding for the costs of free school meals from the Government. The cost of free school meals is met by local authorities from their overall schools budget. Local authorities and schools determine how much is allocated for free school meals based on the circumstances in their area, and how to use any funding that is unclaimed by pupils.

Free Schools

Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what progress he has made on enabling proposed special free schools to be set up where clear parental demand exists but there is reluctance from the local authority.

Nick Gibb: The first special free schools are being set up by passionate and talented groups who want to improve state education provision and choice for families with children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities. We hope that many more such groups will come forward with applications for special free schools proposing to open in September 2013. Applications can be submitted between 13 and 24 February 2012.

GCE A-Level: Mathematics

Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many students sat exams in A-level (a) mathematics and (b) further mathematics in each local authority area in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	The information requested for 2011 is available in the Statistical First Release “GCE/Applied GCE A/AS and Equivalent Examination Results in England, 2010/11 (Provisional)” Table 12a. This publication is available online at the following address:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001035/index.shtml
	
		
			 Number of students aged 16-18 (1)  entered for exams in A-level mathematics and further mathematics, by local authority and region ;  Year: 2007-11 (2) ;  Coverage: England 
			  Mathematics Further Mathematics 
			  2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 North East 1,464 1,651 1,935 2,128 2,269 164 212 216 285 272 
			 Darlington 105 136 149 175 183 15 17 18 27 13 
			 Durham 190 197 239 310 295 11 29 25 46 37 
			 Gateshead 128 120 140 165 174 9 13 7 11 21 
			 Hartlepool 45 59 62 77 78 6 16 11 12 25 
			 Middlesbrough 74 70 98 78 89 7 8 16 17 11 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 140 156 211 210 235 11 9 15 21 18 
			 North Tyneside 107 108 127 151 166 2 9 9 20 13 
			 Northumberland 240 278 275 300 333 43 34 41 28 33 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 159 191 196 186 217 27 30 27 28 39 
			 South Tyneside 65 36 73 72 92 5 3 10 10 13 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 138 194 236 233 251 13 27 25 37 33 
			 Sunderland 73 106 129 171 156 15 17 12 28 16 
			            
			 North West 5,122 5,599 6,283 7,040 7,663 582 692 804 926 1,007 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 116 107 134 137 131 13 9 20 9 15 
			 Blackpool 104 121 139 159 168 6 10 10 11 10 
			 Bolton 178 158 200 215 232 19 12 23 16 20 
			 Bury 170 185 222 253 255 24 25 29 49 51 
			 Cheshire(3) 702 727 — — — 96 94 — — — 
			 Cheshire East — — 393 441 473 — — 63 71 72 
		
	
	
		
			 Cheshire West and Chester — — 431 433 451 — — 55 52 65 
			 Cumbria 445 488 480 559 633 43 66 75 67 98 
			 Halton 39 33 26 33 32 4 5 0 * * 
			 Knowsley 20 40 31 23 20 * 0 0 * 0 
			 Lancashire 805 827 1,014 1,169 1,363 88 83 111 146 157 
			 Liverpool 275 343 353 423 435 13 34 37 51 51 
			 Manchester 262 331 378 421 475 26 47 33 63 46 
			 Oldham 178 190 229 266 246 22 27 31 26 29 
			 Rochdale 53 60 52 57 40 * 5 * * * 
			 Salford 102 95 129 103 136 5 8 * 9 12 
			 Sefton 233 267 267 318 366 29 33 30 30 46 
			 St. Helens 203 229 246 236 332 38 44 34 40 59 
			 Stockport 222 231 214 269 260 18 34 38 39 35 
			 Tameside 107 132 130 155 149 16 16 12 23 20 
			 Trafford 257 297 317 351 351 46 31 44 44 56 
			 Warrington 123 128 179 181 204 18 16 26 31 27 
			 Wigan 283 334 413 460 464 35 58 75 102 96 
			 Wirral 245 276 306 378 447 18 35 46 40 35 
			            
			 Yorkshire  and the  Humber 3,581 3,704 4,099 4,477 4,854 488 456 507 595 651 
			 Barnsley 36 59 30 57 53 3 3 5 7 * 
			 Bradford 256 270 300 325 369 27 24 26 33 35 
			 Calderdale 120 130 158 145 199 11 12 23 21 24 
			 Doncaster 222 211 237 258 296 26 28 29 34 33 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 248 253 244 268 311 28 12 27 26 33 
			 Kingston upon Hull, City of 127 127 141 158 173 10 17 16 24 38 
			 Kirklees 347 347 396 444 531 34 37 39 52 48 
			 Leeds 509 488 528 643 642 80 58 62 90 81 
			 North East Lincolnshire 108 98 119 87 111 14 14 13 13 * 
			 North Lincolnshire 173 196 193 206 207 42 46 39 50 58 
			 North Yorkshire 606 614 695 725 766 85 97 91 93 118 
			 Rotherham 199 217 241 305 317 29 18 20 31 48 
			 Sheffield 320 368 393 409 440 39 34 46 58 44 
			 Wakefield 154 146 247 258 248 19 14 27 26 36 
			 York 156 180 177 189 191 41 42 44 37 40 
			            
			 East Midlands 3,799 4,157 4,583 4,803 5,373 416 484 527 710 669 
			 Derby 168 188 246 270 250 13 25 22 41 36 
			 Derbyshire 549 603 629 593 682 60 77 77 91 92 
			 Leicester 349 402 417 466 603 30 31 20 33 40 
			 Leicestershire(4) 861 931 978 1,019 1,118 83 91 110 138 129 
			 Lincolnshire 592 652 684 799 866 87 98 102 139 133 
			 Northamptonshire 502 519 624 629 673 58 62 65 91 80 
			 Nottingham 257 250 325 334 406 33 25 41 60 70 
			 Nottinghamshire 521 612 680 693 761 52 75 90 117 87 
			 Rutland(5) — — — — 14 — — — — * 
			            
			 West Midlands 4,148 4,538 5,077 5,446 5,998 383 505 628 614 668 
			 Birmingham 889 1,043 1,097 1,194 1,376 81 95 108 109 111 
			 Coventry 198 217 269 269 307 18 35 44 28 45 
			 Dudley 304 368 337 355 403 29 22 41 28 35 
			 Herefordshire 165 166 241 195 232 8 19 23 27 19 
			 Sandwell 57 56 71 79 120 4 * 3 * * 
			 Shropshire 242 286 297 318 311 26 29 41 37 30 
			 Solihull 302 319 364 393 451 22 39 54 58 53 
			 Staffordshire 497 516 624 608 701 32 53 86 75 97 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 127 117 132 150 137 14 * 14 19 * 
			 Telford and Wrekin 157 154 173 190 222 30 26 29 29 34 
			 Walsall 203 208 257 313 297 13 30 40 36 32 
		
	
	
		
			 Warwickshire 507 534 616 704 749 62 68 73 85 117 
			 Wolverhampton 178 193 152 217 211 19 28 18 * 24 
			 Worcestershire 322 361 447 461 481 25 46 54 69 58 
			            
			 East  o f England 4,507 5,001 5,453 6,026 6,537 628 771 802 933 1,013 
			 Bedford — — 174 193 219 — — 18 19 34 
			 Bedfordshire(6) 305 311 — — — 23 30 — — — 
			 Bedfordshire, Central — — 198 210 235 — — 21 19 27 
			 Cambridgeshire 582 684 640 697 768 88 130 104 144 154 
			 Essex 994 1,053 1,261 1,365 1,487 129 157 165 176 186 
			 Hertfordshire 1,218 1,403 1,555 1,647 1,788 192 209 252 258 292 
			 Luton 120 146 174 212 225 13 22 16 28 30 
			 Norfolk 490 532 482 686 671 75 92 94 123 120 
			 Peterborough 106 122 172 150 181 11 19 29 12 13 
			 Southend-on-Sea 173 186 193 237 291 25 25 24 34 47 
			 Suffolk 461 475 515 513 540 62 73 71 99 91 
			 Thurrock 58 89 89 116 132 10 14 8 21 19 
			            
			 London 6,872 7,726 9,170 9,896 11,060 552 725 892 1,138 1,287 
			            
			 Inner London 1,498 1,708 1,964 2,173 2,561 113 158 163 236 283 
			            
			 City of London           
			 Camden 129 153 206 182 207 12 25 19 18 33 
			 Hackney 38 58 53 55 151 * 4 * 3 8 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 167 206 207 220 247 15 13 16 15 22 
			 Haringey 67 92 111 141 135 * 8 11 15 17 
			 Islington 56 70 99 97 134 3 8 10 12 15 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 99 111 112 131 176 7 11 13 11 15 
			 Lambeth 57 63 69 76 88 3 5 * 5 8 
			 Lewisham 201 184 198 239 274 20 17 19 41 42 
			 Newham 165 179 183 217 241 6 15 13 11 20 
			 Southwark 49 48 51 73 72 7 3 * 8 9 
			 Tower Hamlets 92 104 137 148 196 8 9 13 16 24 
			 Wandsworth 222 266 322 373 388 19 21 27 57 40 
			 Westminster 156 174 216 221 252 9 19 16 24 30 
			            
			 Outer London 5,374 6,018 7,206 7,723 8,499 439 567 729 902 1,004 
			 Barking and Dagenham 83 96 117 128 163 * * 13 14 22 
			 Barnet 694 765 921 916 957 37 60 90 98 116 
			 Bexley 205 224 278 263 333 9 27 30 32 28 
			 Brent 321 410 433 471 537 30 42 50 51 62 
			 Bromley 410 432 560 580 592 56 77 101 115 132 
			 Croydon 190 215 257 274 313 12 12 14 24 18 
			 Ealing 196 225 265 331 374 15 8 22 40 55 
			 Enfield 350 378 419 439 528 27 32 28 41 45 
			 Greenwich 99 102 138 153 179 5 * 5 22 21 
			 Harrow 289 371 455 521 625 30 44 48 62 69 
			 Havering 281 286 377 326 401 25 28 35 40 32 
			 Hillingdon 258 292 327 349 387 13 20 16 24 29 
			 Hounslow 224 273 335 351 395 13 11 26 33 39 
			 Kingston upon Thames 324 352 439 458 456 37 49 59 75 58 
			 Merton 61 69 96 69 99 * * 3 3 9 
			 Redbridge 539 597 716 821 865 15 24 44 72 105 
			 Richmond upon Thames 176 194 213 267 196 16 18 24 26 15 
			 Sutton 438 463 581 626 673 80 79 86 94 116 
			 Waltham Forest 236 274 279 380 426 15 27 35 36 33 
			            
		
	
	
		
			 South East 7,882 8,371 9,439 10,485 11,492 1,073 1,261 1,384 1,597 1,713 
			 Bracknell Forest 73 89 90 104 120 9 8 16 24 19 
			 Brighton and Hove 238 207 282 261 322 28 19 32 47 46 
			 Buckinghamshire 849 906 1,024 1,083 1,173 140 171 201 223 204 
			 East Sussex 304 314 331 389 399 39 41 40 48 45 
			 Hampshire 1,562 1,565 1,787 2,097 2,296 209 250 280 308 348 
			 Isle of Wight 46 61 61 69 72 * 6 11 7 10 
			 Kent 1,156 1,301 1,402 1,480 1,576 151 189 161 196 211 
			 Medway 222 207 234 257 291 30 28 25 28 46 
			 Milton Keynes 150 174 191 218 235 22 25 19 23 34 
			 Oxfordshire 627 638 687 752 901 124 128 104 124 139 
			 Portsmouth 16 30 18 36 24 * 7 * 11 3 
			 Reading 170 192 224 254 249 28 42 49 52 50 
			 Slough 206 257 297 327 351 16 17 21 38 42 
			 Southampton 79 95 90 128 191 7 14 * 8 23 
			 Surrey 1,070 1,115 1,311 1,459 1,670 129 143 198 219 245 
			 West Berkshire 183 226 264 260 243 21 37 37 43 48 
			 West Sussex 621 680 753 886 906 76 96 122 145 149 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 150 129 165 190 200 11 18 25 24 27 
			 Wokingham 160 185 228 235 273 27 22 32 29 24 
			            
			 South West 4,084 4,337 4,661 5,206 5,452 525 596 675 761 763 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 138 157 168 220 204 15 18 28 27 40 
			 Bournemouth 110 94 103 125 131 4 10 11 15 13 
			 Bristol, City of 193 200 271 280 331 21 33 42 43 35 
			 Cornwall 360 414 374 477 454 50 62 67 72 50 
			 Devon 449 466 518 557 592 61 68 64 68 81 
			 Dorset 342 353 427 464 446 56 64 67 83 76 
			 Gloucestershire 615 730 652 781 862 75 91 100 109 123 
			 North Somerset 154 141 225 237 236 19 20 22 40 42 
			 Plymouth 168 188 193 234 237 23 17 20 45 36 
			 Poole 144 198 204 237 227 25 28 44 44 47 
			 Somerset 423 483 485 534 543 67 75 66 83 74 
			 South Gloucestershire 203 188 209 233 271 24 24 35 30 32 
			 Swindon 229 217 206 216 219 21 20 33 21 24 
			 Torbay 143 144 163 153 148 16 20 18 11 14 
			 Wiltshire 413 364 463 458 551 48 46 58 70 76 
			            
			 Total (Maintained(7) Sector) 41,459 45,084 50,700 55,507 60,698 4,811 5,702 6,435 7,559 8,043 
			 * = Indicates figures have been suppressed if less than 3, secondary suppression has also been applied where a single suppression would cause an aggregated total to be disclosive. ‘—‘ = Indicates no data. (1) Age at the start of the academic year, eg for 2010/11 age at 31 August 2010. (2) 2011 figures are provisional, all other years are final. (3) Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East replaced Cheshire local authority in April 2009. (4) Includes results from Welbeck, the Defense Sixth Form College funded via another Government Department. (5) No maintained schools prior to 2011 existed for this local authority. (6) Bedford and Central Bedfordshire replaced Bedfordshire local authority in April 2009. (7) Maintained Sector includes LA maintained schools, academies, CTCs and FE sector colleges.

Health Education: Driving under Influence

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department is taking to tackle drink-driving through education in schools and colleges.

Nick Gibb: The current, non-statutory programme of study for personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE) includes teaching pupils about risks and the consequences of their actions on themselves and others. Through National Curriculum science, pupils are currently taught the effects on the body of substance misuse including alcohol. We are reviewing both the National Curriculum and PSHE and will publish proposals for public consultation later this year.

Special Educational Needs: Training

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will implement the proposal by the British Dyslexia Association that teacher training courses should include mandatory training on recognising dyslexia, dyspraxia and other similar learning difficulties in children.

Nick Gibb: All teachers should have a clear understanding of the needs of pupils with special educational needs, including dyslexia and dyspraxia. In order to be awarded qualified teacher status from September, all trainee teachers must demonstrate that they can adapt their teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils, as set out in the new Teachers' Standards. Specifically, teachers will have to have a clear understanding of the needs of pupils with special educational needs or disabilities.
	It is for training providers to decide what trainees should be taught to enable them to achieve the Teachers' Standards. The Department does not mandate content of initial teacher training courses.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Emissions: EU Law

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department made of the likely cost of complying with an EU target of reducing carbon emissions by 30 per cent. in each of the documents disclosed to the Information Commissioner and listed in paragraph 3 of the decision of the First-Tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber, Information Rights) in Case EA/2011/0052, dated 8 November 2011.

Gregory Barker: On 8 November 2011 the First-Tier Tribunal (Information Rights) upheld the Information Commissioner's decision that the Department acted correctly in not disclosing the information listed in paragraph 3 of the tribunal's decision.
	With regard to when this information will be available, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to him on 16 January 2012, Official Report, column 615W.

Green Deal Scheme

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will put in place measures to ensure that Green Deal loans cannot be sold on the doorstep; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: We agree that illegal door step selling of the Green Deal should be prevented. Existing legislation sets out what is and is not acceptable, to protect consumers. We will ensure the code of practice for all Green Deal providers, assessors and installers recognises the existing legislation and allows for any participant found to be in breach to be prevented from operating under the Green Deal.

Green Deal Scheme: Mobile Homes

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure that park home owners benefit from Green Deal measures, including owners who have their energy supplied through a third party and are not eligible for the warm home discount.

Gregory Barker: Successful trials of insulation systems for park homes in 2011 have enabled these measures to be included in carbon emissions reduction target (CERT) for the final year of the scheme. We are now looking at how we could ensure support continues to be available for park home residents through the new energy company obligation, which will form a key element of the Green Deal programme. Park home residents who receive electricity direct from a licensed electricity supplier will also be able to take advantage of Green Deal finance.

Renewable Energy: Manpower

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of jobs supported by renewable electricity generation in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) Scotland and (d) Wales in the latest period for which figures are available.

Charles Hendry: Our analysis for the Renewable Energy Roadmap (published in July 2011) shows that the renewable energy sector already employs more than a quarter of a million people.
	From April 2011 to November 2011, my Department identified a total of £2.46 billion announced and planned investments in the renewable energy sector, with the potential support of over 11,600 temporary and permanent jobs.
	A map showing the location of these investments can be downloaded from our website at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/meeting-energy-demand/renewable-energy/3994-renewables-investment-and-jobs-announced-1-april-t.pdf
	While this does not show investments or jobs specifically in renewable electricity, it does provide a breakdown by English region and the devolved Administrations.
	This is not a definitive list of the renewables market activity for this period and the total level of activity is likely to be significantly higher but it indicates the continuing realisation of growth and investment opportunities in the UK renewables sector.

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to paragraph 73 of the impact assessment on the consultation on feed-in tariffs for solar PV, whether the 1,000 to 10,000 gross full-time equivalent jobs estimated to be created in the solar sector in the three years to 2014-15, will be in addition to jobs currently supported by the PV industry.

Gregory Barker: In the 2012-13 to 2014-15 period we estimate the total number of gross full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs to be 1,000 to 10,000, based on new installations during that period.
	This is a separate estimate from the 8,000 to 14,000 gross FTE jobs that we estimate were supported by solar PV installations to the end of October 2011.
	Furthermore, it should be noted that current tariffs are providing returns well in excess of the 5% that was intended when the FITs scheme was launched. Any jobs that are affected are dependent on rates of support above those the scheme was intended to provide, and should not therefore be considered sustainable.

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2011, Official Report, column 576W, on solar power: feed-in tariffs, what estimate he has made of potential changes in uptake in each year from 2011-12 to 2014-15; what assessment he has made of the causes of any such changes; and if he will place in the Library full details of the calculation referred to in the answer.

Gregory Barker: Estimates of future solar PV growth are extremely uncertain. DECC is currently reviewing its estimates in the light of responses to the current consultation on PV tariffs as well as other recent changes in the market, and will provide updated assessments for the final impact assessment published alongside the post-consultation policy response.

Solar Power

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2011, Official Report, column 576W, on solar power: feed-in tariffs, what estimate he has made of the number of full-time equivalent jobs in the solar sector that would have been created had the recent changes to tariffs not been introduced.

Gregory Barker: It is difficult to estimate, and forecast accurately the numbers of jobs associated with any single technology or sector, such as solar PV. However, there are a range of methodologies that can, and are, being used to provide an indication; these inevitably lead to a range of estimates being calculated.
	We did not carry out an assessment of the number of jobs that would have been created had the recent changes not have been introduced. However, we estimate that 1,000 to 10,000 gross additional full time equivalent jobs could be created in this sector in the three years to 2014-15 under our proposals.
	Furthermore, it should be noted that current tariffs are providing returns well in excess of the 5% that was intended when the FITs scheme was launched. Any jobs that are affected are dependent on rates of support above those the scheme was intended to provide, and should not therefore be considered sustainable.

Uranium: Prices

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the comparative advantages of (a) nuclear energy and (b) other forms of energy following the recent fall in the price of uranium.

Charles Hendry: The Government have not undertaken an assessment on the relative competitiveness of electricity generation technologies following reductions in the price of uranium. While a reduction in uranium prices in isolation improves the relative competitiveness of nuclear power, it has a limited effect on overall nuclear generation costs. This is because uranium represents a much smaller proportion of nuclear generation costs than the fuel costs for other electricity generation technologies.
	DECC commissions regular independent assessments of electricity generation costs. The latest reports can be accessed via the following link:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/about/ec_social_res/analytic_projs/gen_costs/gen_costs.aspx

Warm Front Scheme

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget for the Warm Front Scheme is in 2011-12; and how much of the funding so allocated has been spent to date.

Gregory Barker: The Department has allocated the Warm Front scheme a total budget of £143 million(1) for 2011-12. Of the £143 million, £86 million has been spent with a further £32 million of committed expenditure to date(2).
	(1 )The total budget of £143 million consists of £110 million allocated to Warm Front and associated activities secured through the spending review 2010. Of this, £108 million was directly allocated to Warm Front In addition DECC allocated £25 million to support the completion of outstanding work from 2010-11 with a further £10 million allocated to Warm Front in 2011-12 from the Department of Health.
	(2) As of the week ending 7 January 2012.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Veterinary Services

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure that the closure of regional veterinary laboratories does not adversely affect the levels of disease among farm livestock.

James Paice: The majority of laboratory samples are currently sent by specialist couriers, so for most customers, the only change will be in the destination to which the samples are sent. Veterinary Investigation Officers will continue to work with private vets to reach diagnosis.
	The ability to respond to disease outbreaks with surge in capacity is maintained because confirmatory tests for notifiable diseases are carried out by Weybridge, which is not part of the regional laboratory network.
	Following the rationalisation of the laboratory services department, the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) will still retain capacity at the site of the post-mortem examination to carry out tests, e.g. for anthrax and TB, that are considered to be essential by our veterinary experts and these will be reported urgently.
	At present, no AHVLA laboratory operates on weekends or bank holidays. This will change as a result of the rationalisation, to allow weekend working to improve turnaround times for samples received over this period.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the role of the Office of High Representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: We continue to give our full support to the Office of the High Representative and High Representative Valentin Inzko. The High Representative plays a key role as the final authority for interpreting the General Framework Agreement for Peace (the ‘Dayton’ agreement) in respect of civilian implementation of the peace settlement in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The High Representative also acts as an important civilian safeguard against political instability. The Peace Implementation Council has determined that Bosnia and Herzegovina must fulfil certain conditions (comprising five objectives and two conditions) before the Office of the High Representative can close. These conditions have not yet been met.

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Politics and Government

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the compliance of Republika Srpska with (a) the Constitutional Court of Bosnia-Herzegovina and (b) other institutions established under the Dayton agreement; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: The UK Government are concerned that the Republika Srpska continues to question and challenge Bosnia and Herzegovina's state level institutions, competencies and laws, as well as the authority of the High Representative under the General Framework Agreement for Peace (the ‘Dayton’ agreement).
	We strongly support, and maintain close contact with, the Office of the High Representative in monitoring such matters, and we defend state-level judicial institutions as legally constituted and necessary for upholding the rule of law.
	We were particularly concerned at legal challenges to the Bosnia and Herzegovina State Court in April 2011. We have welcomed the subsequent launch of a Structured Dialogue on Justice between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the EU. The UK believes that the best prospect for a stable, prosperous and sovereign Bosnia and Herzegovina is as a member of the EU and NATO. As the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), underlined in his statement of 13 January 2012, following agreement on the formation of a new Bosnia and Herzegovina Council of Ministers, we call on all parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina to work together and display the determination, compromise and leadership required for Bosnia and Herzegovina to progress on this path.

Burma: Politics and Government

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the progress of negotiations between the Burmese government and the Karen National Union; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: The Karen National Union signed an initial agreement with a state level peace delegation from the Burmese Government on 13 January. It is the first step towards a formal, long term ceasefire and political process. Further talks are set to take place in the coming weeks.
	The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), welcomed this important and historic step in his written ministerial statement of the 16 January 2012, Official Report, column 28-29W.

Embassies: Flags

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which UK embassies and consulates (a) fly the EU flag and (b) have on their premises an EU flag for public display; and what cost has been incurred in purchasing such flags.

Henry Bellingham: The UK Representation to the EU, Brussels, display the EU flag at all times. On Europe day, UK missions in the EU and EU-applicant countries display the EU flag. Other UK missions may also display the EU flag on Europe day where this is normal local practice. Many other UK diplomatic missions hold an EU flag either to fly or for public display purposes on appropriate occasions. To obtain the exact figure and the costs incurred in purchasing these flags could be done only at disproportionate costs as details are not held centrally.

Kazakhstan: Elections

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the recent elections in Kazakhstan.

David Lidington: Kazakhstan held parliamentary and local council elections on 15 January, including in Zhanaozen which was the scene of violent clashes last month. Initial results show President Nazarbayev's Nur Otan party winning 81% of the seats. They are joined by AK Zhol and the Communists People's party (CPPK), who both passed the 7% threshold to secure seats.
	The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights' (ODIHR) initial evaluation of the elections was critical stating that the "elections still did not meet fundamental principles of democratic elections" and that there were "serious and systematic shortcomings".
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office welcomes the fact that the elections took place peacefully and the move towards multi-party representation in parliament. However, we share many of the concerns raised by ODIHR and have encouraged an early response from the Kazakh authorities to the ODIHR’ s report and recommendations, as a basis for ensuring fully free and fair elections in the future.

Nigeria: Fuels

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the government of Nigeria on the effects of the removal of the fuel subsidy in that country.

Henry Bellingham: The removal of the fuel subsidy in Nigeria is an internal matter and the effects of removing or reducing the fuel subsidy are for the Nigerian Government to manage. However, the British Government have encouraged the Nigerian Government to pursue sound and effective economic reform plans accompanied by fiscal transparency. Removing the fuel subsidy is a valid economic objective which would allow the Nigerian Government to spend more on infrastructure and development projects to the benefit of the Nigerian public. We welcome the recent announcement by President Jonathan that the Nigerian Government is committed to tackling corruption in the petroleum industry as well as other sectors of the economy.

Nigeria: Oil

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the recent nationwide protests in Nigeria regarding oil prices.

Henry Bellingham: Through the British high commission in Abuja, we have closely monitored the impact of President Jonathan's decision to remove fuel subsidies, which led to protests and a national strike from 9 January until action was suspended on 16 January. Regrettably, some outbreaks of violence led to loss of life, but the majority of protests were carried out in a peaceful manner. Negotiations between the Government and unions resulted in suspension of the Government decision and the strike, and averted a shut down in Nigerian oil production—without any discernible impact on oil prices. President Jonathan issued a statement, committing the Nigerian Government to tackling corruption in the petroleum industry and other sectors of the economy. We have encouraged the Nigerian Government to ensure that fiscal transparency and effective economic reform are implemented, although decisions on how to achieve that remain an internal matter for them. We will continue to monitor the situation in Nigeria, and ensure that our travel advice reflects development.

Nigeria: Politics and Government

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the causes of sectarian violence involving the Boko Haram in Nigeria.

Henry Bellingham: In the last year Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for attacks against a range of targets including government institutions, security forces and an international organisation, the UN. Recently, Boko Haram has also claimed responsibility for a number of attacks specifically targeted against Christians and Christian places of worship, although it remains the case that the majority of Boko Haram's victims to date have been Muslims, including Muslim religious leaders. We assess that the purpose of the attacks against Christians is to exacerbate religious and communal tensions. However, in some instances we judge that attacks carried out with criminal motives are also being ascribed to Boko Haram. Poverty, lack of economic opportunity, social inequality and political tensions all contribute significantly to insecurity in northern and central Nigeria.

South Sudan: Politics and Government

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the security situation in South Sudan; and if he will make a statement.

Henry Bellingham: We are greatly concerned about the security situation in parts of South Sudan, and particularly about the violence between the Lou Nuer and Murle tribes in Jonglei state. A number of lives were saved in Jonglei by the political and military actions of the Government of South Sudan (GoSS) and the UN, but it is important that lessons are learned and that protection of civilians is accorded the highest priority by the Government of South Sudan, with whom the primary responsibility lies, and the UN.

Sudan

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on trade with the Republic of Sudan.

Henry Bellingham: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 12 December 2011, Official Report, column 608W.

HEALTH

Disability: Children

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will assess the findings of the report entitled Disabled Children and Health Reform: Questions, Challenges and Opportunities, published by Every Disabled Child Matters and The Children's Trust; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The Department has considered the recommendations set out in the report entitled ‘Disabled Children and Health Reform: Questions, Challenges and Opportunities’, published by Every Disabled Child Matters and The Children's Trust.
	A detailed response to each of the recommendations within the report was sent in correspondence between my noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Earl Howe) and Every Disabled Child Matters.
	A copy of this letter has been placed in the Library.

Foetal Alcohol Syndrome

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to determine the prevalence of foetal alcohol spectrum disorders; and what assessment he has made of the cost-effectiveness of (a) prevention strategies and (b) targeted interventions for high-risk groups.

Anne Milton: In 2005, the Department commissioned the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit (NPEU) to review the evidence of foetal effects of prenatal alcohol exposure. The NPEU published its findings in 2006 as ‘Review of the Fetal Effects of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure’.
	The review discussed in detail the difficulties of identifying accurately children with foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and alcohol neuro-developmental disorder and the resulting difficulties in estimating prevalence.
	The review considered the risks of foetal exposure to low to moderate alcohol consumption and to binge drinking during pregnancy.
	The review found no consistent evidence of adverse effects from low-to-moderate prenatal alcohol consumption, although it also found that the evidence base was limited.
	In 2007, UK chief medical officers (CMOs) published revised guidance on alcohol consumption during pregnancy, which took account of the NPEU's review. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published further guidance on this subject for health professionals in England in 2008.
	NPEU's review identified a number of research gaps, including levels of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, prevalence of FAS and foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), whether a ‘safe’ level of alcohol consumption could be identified, and how to characterise and diagnose neuro-developmental problems in children with FAS and FASD.
	Prevention strategies include universal and targeted interventions. Among the former, advice on drinking in pregnancy and possible harmful foetal effects is incorporated in the Department's public health materials. A warning on drinking alcohol while pregnant or trying to conceive, consistent with the UK CMOs' guidance, will be included on alcohol labels as a result of an industry pledge under the Public Health Responsibility Deal, covering 80% of the off-trade market by the end of 2013.
	NICE has published ‘Pregnancy and complex social factors: A model for service provision for pregnant women with complex social factors’ (NICE clinical guideline 110, September 2010). This includes advice on support for pregnant women who misuse substances, whether alcohol or drugs.

Health: Disadvantaged

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the effect of health trainers on the general health of the local population in deprived areas;
	(2)  how many health trainers there are in (a) England and (b) Worcestershire.

Anne Milton: The Department's Policy Research Programme has commissioned an evaluation of the health trainer initiative. The project looks at the ways in which the role has been interpreted and the types of advice given. Implementation is context-specific and it will be difficult to isolate and generalise about health impact within this or any subsequent research.
	The Data Collection and Reporting Service system has about 85-90% coverage of health trainer services in England: this equates to 2,173 staff. For Worcestershire, the primary care trust organisation currently employs a total of 28 qualified or trainee health trainers, and health champions.

Hospitals: North Tees and Hartlepool

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2010, Official Report, column 407W, on Hospitals: Durham, if he will reconsider plans to implement the recommendations of the Darzi review of acute health services north of the River Tees; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 2 June 2010, Official Report, column 40W, on Hospitals: Wynyard, what plans he has for the future of the proposed new hospital at Wynyard in Hartlepool constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: No. I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 28 June 2010, Official Report, column 407W, on Hospitals: Durham. The recommendations of the Darzi review of acute health services north of the River Tees were superseded by those put forward by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP). The “Momentum: pathways to healthcare” reconfiguration programme has been developed locally by North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust, in liaison with the Tees Primary Care Trust cluster, to implement the recommendations made by the IRP.
	Officials in the Department are currently reviewing the outline business case for a private finance initiative funding proposal for the development of the proposed new hospital at Wynyard. Subject to departmental approval, this application will also need to be approved by Her Majesty's Treasury in order to proceed.

Influenza: Vaccination

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of general practitioner patients had the influenza vaccination in each primary care trust area in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011.

Anne Milton: Data on the uptake of seasonal flu vaccine among general practitioner (GP) patients who were recommended to receive the seasonal flu vaccine in 2009 and 2010 at primary care trust (PCX) level were published in the Health Protection Agency's annual influenza report for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 flu seasons, ‘Seasonal influenza vaccine uptake amongst GP patient groups in England 2010-11’, and ‘Seasonal influenza vaccine uptake among the 65s and over and under 65s at risk in England winter season 2009-10’. A copy of each report has been placed in the Library.
	Data on the uptake of seasonal flu vaccine in GP patients recommended to receive the seasonal flu vaccine at PCT level in the 2011-12 flu season, up to 31 December 2011 have been placed in the Library and are available on the Department's website at:
	http://immunisation.dh.gov.uk
	The Health Protection Agency will publish an annual report for the 2011-12 flu season later in 2012.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  with reference to the provision of a patient access scheme for the drug nilotinib by Novartis, what discussions he has had with Bristol-Myers Squibb on the provision of a similar scheme for the drug dasatinib;
	(2)  with reference to the provision of a patient access scheme for the drug nilotinib by Novartis, what his policy is on the provision of a similar scheme by Bristol-Myers Squibb with respect to dasatinib;
	(3)  with reference to the provision of a patient access scheme for the drug nilotinib by Novartis, what discussions he has had with leukaemia patients and their representatives on (a) this scheme and (b) the need for comparable schemes for other leukaemia treatments.

Paul Burstow: It is for the manufacturers of a drug to decide if they wish to submit a patient access scheme proposal to the Department for potential consideration as part of a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence appraisal. The manufacturer of dasatinib has not approached the Department regarding the possibility of a patient access scheme for dasatinib.
	We have had no discussions with leukaemia patients and their representatives on the nilotinib patient access scheme or the need for comparable schemes for other leukaemia treatments.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the recent decision by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence not to recommend dasatinib as a first or second line of treatment for patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has not yet published final guidance on the use of dasatinib for the first-line treatment of chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML). NICE has recently consulted on its draft recommendations and will now consider the responses received before issuing final guidance.
	NICE issued final technology appraisal guidance on 13 January 2012 that recommends the use of nilotinib for the treatment of patients with CML who are resistant or intolerant to standard-dose imatinib but does not recommend dasatinib or high-dose imatinib for this indication.
	NICE is an independent body and we have made no assessment of its draft or final guidance on these drugs.
	In the absence of final positive NICE technology appraisal guidance, primary care trusts (PCTs) are required to take funding decisions locally based on an assessment of the available evidence and to have processes in place to consider individual funding requests for drugs. Where a cancer drug is not routinely funded by a PCT, patients may be able to access it through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Neurology

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the recent National Audit Office report on Services for people with neurological conditions, what steps he plans to take to ensure equitable services across England for people with neurological conditions.

Paul Burstow: We are considering the National Audit Office report on services for people with neurological conditions, and will be responding in due course.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Criminal Investigation: Costs

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average cost to the police is of investigating a crime leading to a (a) caution, (b) conviction in a magistrates' court, (c) conviction in a Crown court and (d) community sentence.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office published estimates of the average cost of police activity associated with various crime types for 2003 in Home Office Online Report 30/05. These estimates can be found in table 2.2 via the following link. No estimates have been made of average police costs which relate specifically to investigation and particular disposals.
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100413151441/http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/rdsolr3005.pdf

Crown Prosecution Service

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what powers she has to instigate an independent review of a police operational decision not to pass evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Nick Herbert: Under section 11(2) of the Police Reform Act 2002, the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), can require the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) to report “about matters relating generally to the carrying out of its functions”. Under section 54 (2B) of the Police Act 1996, the Home Secretary can require Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary to carry out an inspection of a police force.

Metropolitan Police

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what functions have been transferred from the Association of Chief Police Officers to the Metropolitan Police since May 2010; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: This is a matter for the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

Overseas Students: National Insurance Numbers

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of introducing time restrictions on national insurance numbers for international students in the UK on student visas; and if she will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	We are currently examining a range of options for strengthening cross-government co-operation regarding the immigration status of overseas nationals in the UK and will make further announcements in due course.

Police and Crime Commissioners

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what responsibilities she proposes that Police and Crime Commissioners will have in respect of services for victims of crime.

Nick Herbert: In November 2011, I announced the Government's intention to consult on (a) the proposal that the majority of support services for victims of crime be commissioned by local commissioners, based on locally identified need and (b), that Police and Crime Commissioners be the local commissioners of such services. The detail of these proposals will be included in the forthcoming Victims and Witnesses consultation.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Christmas

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on (a) Christmas trees and (b) other Christmas decorations in 2011; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: Nothing.

Departmental Recruitment

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on recruitment agencies in each month since September 2011.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) has a framework arrangement with recruitment agency Manpower Services to provide agency personnel for administrative positions. This framework arrangement is managed centrally through Human Resources Division (HRD) and detailed spend is recorded. HRD also contracts administrative personnel through the agency provider Margaret Hodge when Manpower Services is unable to provide what is required.
	The total DFID spend to Manpower and Margaret Hodge in each month since September 2011 is as follows:
	
		
			 £ 
			 Month Manpower Margaret Hodge 
			 September 39,781.12 792.00 
			 October 65,84975 1,584.00 
			 November 33,771.41 1,821.60 
			 December (1)— 1,188.00 
			 Total 139,402.28 6,086.88 
			 (1) Not yet available through the charging mechanism. 
		
	
	DFID departments have authority to contract agency personnel directly for specialist and technical roles. Records of this spend are not maintained centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Developing Countries: Multinational Companies

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations he has received on the likely effect on developing countries of the proposed changes in the Finance Bill to the rules governing Controlled Foreign Companies.

Alan Duncan: Department for International Development Ministers and officials meet regularly with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to discuss various issues including taxation and domestic resource mobilisation in developing countries. The matter of Controlled Foreign Companies has been raised on occasion in such meetings.

Developing Countries: Multinational Companies

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effect on developing countries of the proposed changes in the Finance Bill to the rules governing Controlled Foreign Companies.

Alan Duncan: The Government have not produced an assessment of the effect on developing countries of the proposed changes to the CFC rules as these rules are designed to prevent artificial diversion of UK profits. The Government work through a variety of channels to deliver high-quality capacity building in developing country tax administrations to ensure that these countries are in a position to collect the tax they are owed.

Overseas Aid

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what mechanisms are in place to ensure that official development assistance spending by other Government Departments or through pooled funding mechanisms such as the conflict pool comply with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development guidelines.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) is responsible for reporting UK official development assistance (ODA) to the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). This involves compiling the details of official development assistance spending by other Government Departments or through pooled funding mechanisms such as the conflict pool.
	DFID works closely with other Government Departments to ensure that reported ODA expenditure complies with the DAC directives on ODA eligibility. This includes providing written guidance on specific types of expenditure and answering queries on ODA eligibility. In cases where there is uncertainty regarding ODA eligibility, DFID requests clarification from the DAC and ensures that the recommendations are followed. Both DFID and the DAC review the items of expenditure reported as ODA in each calendar year and any questions regarding ODA eligibility are resolved through mutual agreement with other Government Departments when necessary. As the UK representative on ODA compliance and reporting, DFID actively participates in the development of new criteria on ODA eligibility with other member states of the DAC.

JUSTICE

Offenders: Mental illness

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders held under the Mental Health Act 1983 have received employment and support allowance in each of the last three years; and at what cost to the public purse such allowances were paid.

Chris Grayling: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	Persons who have been convicted of a criminal offence and are serving their sentence in hospital under the Mental Health Act are not entitled to social security benefits and are therefore not eligible to receive employment and support allowance (ESA). Therefore any cost to the public purse in these cases would be met by the Department of Health.
	However, once the sentence has been served benefit would become payable. Information is not held centrally on the numbers of such people who receive ESA.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Flags

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on plans to introduce an official flag for Northern Ireland.

Owen Paterson: The Union flag is the official flag of Northern Ireland. I have had no discussions with the Northern Ireland Executive in relation to this issue.

Human Trafficking

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of human trafficking from and into Northern Ireland.

Owen Paterson: Following the devolution of policing and justice functions in April 2010, matters relating to human trafficking are now devolved and are the responsibility of the Minister of Justice in Northern Ireland. You may wish to approach him directly on this matter.

SCOTLAND

Enterprise Zones

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he has had any discussions with the Scottish Government (a) orally and (b) through written communication on the location of enterprise zones in Scotland.

David Mundell: The UK Government introduced enterprise zones as part of the 2011 Budget. As a result, the Scottish Government received Barnett consequentials which the Scottish Government have now decided to use for a comparable scheme. The location of enterprise zones in Scotland is a matter for the Scottish Government to determine and I have therefore had no discussions with the Scottish Government on this matter. There has been discussion at official level with the Scottish Government and HM Treasury on the application of incentives within enterprise zones in Scotland which have a bearing on reserved matters such as state aid.

TRANSPORT

Blue Badge Scheme

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many staff in her Department are responsible for liaising with local authorities on the blue badge scheme;
	(2)  what the cost has been of the online application system for the blue badge scheme since its introduction;
	(3)  how many complaints her Department received regarding the blue badge scheme online application system from (a) local authorities, (b) hon. Members and (c) members of the public in (i) 2011 and (ii) 2012 to date;
	(4)  how many blue badges were issued in each of the last three years.

Norman Baker: Three staff in the Department for Transport (DFT) are responsible, among other duties, for liaising with local authorities on the blue badge scheme.
	The Blue Badge Improvement Service went live on 1 January 2012 in England and Scotland and will also go live in Wales in April 2012. This is a new system which is now being used by all local authorities in England and Scotland to develop a common database of blue badge holders and badges on issue, make a national online application form available via:
	http://www.direct.gov.uk
	and to print a new blue badge design which is more secure and will prevent fraud and abuse of the scheme. The private sector has invested the capital needed to develop the service, in return for a charge per badge issued that will be payable by local authorities. This funding arrangement means that there is no cost to the Government for any aspect of the service, including the on-line form.
	The online application system came into force on 1 January 2012. The DFT has not received any complaints about the approximately 20,000 badges that have been printed and issued or the 2,000 applications that have been received through the online application form.
	The estimated number of blue badges issued in England was 906,000 in 2009-10 and 939,000 in 2010-11. Estimates for earlier years are not available.

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the six-month trial to suspend the Dartford Crossing tolls during periods of severe congestion; and how many times the tolls were suspended during the trial.

Michael Penning: The six month trial using the criteria set out in the suspension of charges protocol for the Dartford Crossing ended on 31 December 2011. The findings are currently being reviewed and it is expected that a report will be available in spring 2012. Until the review is complete, the current protocol will remain in place.
	During the trial period, the road user charge at the Dartford Crossing was suspended once on 26 August 2011.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what she proposes will be the total expenditure from (a) her Department's budget and (b) Network Rail's regulated asset base on (i) bridge renewals, (ii) station enhancements and (iii) improving winter resilience in each of the remaining years of the comprehensive spending review period.

Theresa Villiers: As part of the Growth Review, £250 million of funding was provided for bridge renewals; £26 million was allocated to the Access for All programme to deliver station accessibility improvements; and £10 million was allocated to improved winter resilience. This expenditure was funded via Network Rail's Regulated Asset Base (RAB).
	The Department for Transport and Network Rail have agreed that these schemes will be delivered by the end of Control Period 4 (i.e. March 2014).

Departmental Public Expenditure

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the Autumn Statement, how much of the cost of the announced investment in (a) bridge renewals, (b) station enhancements and (c) improving winter resilience she proposes will fall beyond the comprehensive spending review period.

Theresa Villiers: The investments in bridge renewals, station enhancements and winter resilience will all be financed via additions to Network Rail's Regulated Asset Base (RAB).
	As with other regulated utilities, additions to the RAB are financed via a return paid to Network Rail and an amortisation (i.e. depreciation) charge. These payments are made over the life of the asset (generally around 30 years).

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate she has made of the cost to her Department of closing regional Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency offices; and what proportion of such costs arise from (a) staff, (b) premises and (c) other costs.

Michael Penning: holding answer 19 January 2012
	I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 17 January 2012, Official Report, column 638W, with regards to potential costs arising from redundancy. Total one-off costs are estimated as follows:
	
		
			 Total one-off cost s Up to £50 million 
			 Staff £32 million 
			 Premises £5 million 
			 Other Up to £13 million 
		
	
	These costs and saving are under continuous review and the estimated figures provided are subject to refinement.

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) meets the needs of people who either cannot or choose not to use web-based services and who continue to require face-to-face and postal services if the proposals to centralise DVLA services are implemented.

Michael Penning: holding answer 19 January 2012
	Responses to the current consultation will enable the DVLA to better understand the needs of all its customers. This will inform the development of the transformation proposals and decisions on the delivery of DVLA services.

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the likely effect of plans to centralise Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency services on the cost to its customers of its services.

Michael Penning: holding answer 19 January 2012
	No formal assessment has been completed. Customer responses to the current consultation will be used to inform a detailed assessment of the costs and benefits arising from the proposals. The assessment will be completed after the consultation period has ended.

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the potential effects on the average length of time taken by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to carry out driver services-related tasks if proposals to centralise its operations are implemented.

Michael Penning: holding answer 19 January 2012
	Analysis has been undertaken of all driver transactions conducted within the local office network and the implications of centralising this work. Initial results of this analysis indicate that the centralisation of driver transactions will not affect the agency's ability to meet its Secretary of State targets.

Driver Information Systems

Laura Sandys: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if she will publish the proposed agenda for her Department's planned summit on satellite navigation systems;
	(2)  what plans she has to discuss the role satellite navigation systems in diverting HGVs away from small rural roads at her Department's planned summit on satellite navigation.

Norman Baker: The Department is developing the agenda for the summit with ADEPT, an association of local authority chief officers, and ITS(UK), a representative body of the satellite navigation industry. The agenda will be shared with participants once finalised.
	More information on the background to the workshop can be found in the Government's response to its consultation on road classification, available at:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/publications/road-network-policy/

High Speed Two

Guy Opperman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans she has to ensure that equipment and materials for High Speed 2 are (a) made in and (b) procured from the north-east.

Justine Greening: The Government believe that it is important that the UK-based supply chain should be in a position to benefit as far as possible from the opportunities presented by the development and delivery of HS2, including firms in the north-east of England. As set out in the National Infrastructure Plan, HS2 will form part of a long-term pipeline of infrastructure projects in the UK which will enable private sector firms to plan for the future and invest in technology and skills. The Government will also seek to open a dialogue with potential UK-based suppliers to ensure that they are well-placed to bid competitively for future contracts, including making better use of pre-procurement dialogue to encourage efficiency and innovation, and establish more sustainable supply chains.

HM Coastguard

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many vessels HM Coastguard has assisted in each of the last five years.

Michael Penning: The following table shows the number of incidents in which vessels were assisted by HM Coastguard in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  Number of incidents where vessels assisted 
			 2007 5,994 
			 2008 5,406 
			 2009 6,571 
			 2010 6,362 
			 2011 6,791

Railways: Fares

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to section 30 of the Coalition Agreement, what recent progress she has made on the commitment to fair pricing for rail travel.

Theresa Villiers: The Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), announced on 29 November that the Government have secured the funding needed to keep the increase in the cap on average regulated rail fares and Transport for London fares to an average of RPI+1% for 2012.

Railways: Finance

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment she has made of the potential effects of changes to liquidity costs for banks on the funding of (a) rolling stock and (b) infrastructure projects.

Theresa Villiers: Rolling stock and infrastructure projects that are currently in procurement but not yet signed, are regularly monitored for value for money and affordability. This is done on a case by case basis.

TREASURY

Bank Services

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will commission an independent cost-benefit analysis of the introduction of portable bank account numbers.

David Gauke: The Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) recommended an account switching and redirection service as a means to promoting competition in the banking market in their final report.
	The Government believe that the switching service, as recommended by the ICB, will deliver significant consumer benefits once it is established in September 2013, providing consumers with a safe and reliable service that allows them to hold their bank to account.
	The ICB decided not to recommend the introduction of portable account numbers, concluding that
	"its costs and incremental benefits are uncertain relative to redirection"
	and that
	"it appears that redirection may deliver many of the benefits of account number portability at lower cost".
	However, as outlined in the Government response to the ICB report on 19 December 2011, the Government will assess whether or not the new switching service has delivered the expected consumer benefits once the service is operational, and if necessary, will then consider further measures, including full account portability.

Cash Dispensing: Fees and Charges

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has held discussions with (a) publicly owned banks and (b) UK Financial Investments Ltd on cash machine charges for basic bank account holders.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials meet with, and receive representations from, a wide range of organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors as part of the usual policymaking process. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such representations.

Credit Reference Agencies

Andrew Stephenson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the UK maintains its triple A credit rating.

Mark Hoban: The Government's macroeconomic strategy is designed to protect the economy through this period of instability, to maintain market confidence in the UK and to lay the foundations for a stronger and more balanced economy in the future. The Autumn Statement of 29 November 2011, Official Report, columns 799-810, set out a comprehensive plan to return the public finances to a sustainable position and meet the Government's fiscal targets. In recent months, the major credit rating agencies have re-affirmed the UK's sovereign credit rating at AAA with a stable outlook.

Investment

Guy Opperman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is taking steps to reform the banking system by using Government funds to set up an industry bank.

Mark Hoban: The Government have already taken steps to get credit flowing to UK businesses and to the wider economy. At the Autumn Statement of 29 November 2011, Official Report, columns 799-810, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), launched a package of interventions worth up to £21 billion to ease the flow of credit to businesses that do not have ready access to capital markets. The package includes a National Loan Guarantee Scheme of up to £20 billion of guarantees for bank funding to lower the cost of lending to smaller businesses, subject to state aid approval; and a new £1 billion Business Finance Partnership to deliver additional finance to mid-sized businesses through non-bank lending channels. This is alongside a range of other Government measures to support small businesses access finance including the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG).
	The Government are also keen to promote financial stability and competition in the UK banking sector and has already set out its intention to implement the recommendations of the Independent Commission on Banking.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Teresa Pearce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the categories of employment are in which people are not allowed to file individual self- assessment forms online.

David Gauke: The vast majority of self assessment (SA) taxpayers can file their SA tax return online by using the free HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) self assessment online service or commercial software. The nature of an individual's employment does not necessarily preclude them from filing their SA tax return online. However, a small proportion of SA taxpayers are not able to file online, usually because they need to complete special dedicated pages.
	A full list of these exclusions is available on the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) website at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/ebu/2011-exc-indi.pdf
	These customers are not able to file online as it would be disproportionately costly to develop the necessary forms and links to departmental computer systems.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Gender Recognition

Paul Maynard: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps she plans to take to address transgender discrimination.

Lynne Featherstone: In December 2011, the Government published “Advancing transgender equality: a plan for action,” the first ever Government transgender equality action plan. This plan includes firm cross-Government commitments to be delivered throughout the lifetime of this Parliament. It outlines the actions Government will take to improve the lives of transgender people in all areas of public policy, including in education, employment, hate crime, and health and social care.
	The Government will continue to work with and support public bodies, businesses, practitioners and the voluntary sector throughout the delivery of the commitments included.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Carer’s Allowance

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will allow carers who reach state pension age to continue to claim carer's allowance.

Steve Webb: The Government have no current plans to make any changes to the conditions of entitlement for carer's allowance.

Children: Disadvantaged

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effect of material deprivation on the levels of subjective well-being of children;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effect of levels of household income on the levels of subjective well-being of children;
	(3)  what research his Department has commissioned to measure the subjective well-being of children;
	(4)  what assessment his Department has made of the potential effects of the provisions of the Welfare Reform Bill on levels of subjective well-being of children.

Maria Miller: The Department for Work and Pensions is working with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and a range of stakeholders, including other Government Departments and representatives from the third sector, to develop well-being measures for children and young people as part of the overall Measuring National Well-being Programme.
	Measures appropriate to children and young people need to include both their own views about their well-being as well as more objective measures of the circumstances that children and young people find themselves in. Collecting subjective well-being information from children is important because research has shown that parents' reporting of children's subjective well-being is quite different from the way children report it themselves.
	This work will provide more robust intelligence about children's well-being and the factors that contribute to it, provide a measure of children's well-being in the UK in comparison to other comparable countries, and drive policy prioritisation to improve outcomes for children and young people. This is a developing field of research, being led by ONS. Once their analysis is complete, we will consider its application to income and material deprivation statistics.
	The Department has also commissioned a research project to investigate the determinants of wellbeing across the lifecycle, which will look at both childhood well-being and well-being at later stages to see how these inter-relate and how childhood well-being is linked to adult outcomes.
	More generally, the Department considers the impact of policies on groups with protected characteristics that are likely to be affected, as the equalities duty requires. Age is one of the protected characteristics.
	For example, the Department has considered the impact of Welfare Reform on children. Work and the improved incomes that flow from it, have beneficial effects in terms of people's health and well-being, the educational achievements of children and improvements in communities, such as reduced crime and antisocial behaviour.
	Universal credit will improve work incentives by allowing individuals to keep more of their income as they move into work, and by introducing a smoother and more transparent reduction of benefits when they increase their earnings. In the long run universal credit could reduce the number of workless households by as much as 300,000 according to the Impact Assessment published by the Department of Work and Pensions in October 2011.
	The greater simplicity of universal credit is also expected to lead to a substantial increase in the take-up of currently unclaimed benefits, with most of the impact being at the lower end of the income distribution. The Impact Assessment published in October 2011 estimates that, on reasonable assumptions, the combined impact of take-up and entitlements will lift around 900,000 individuals out of poverty, including more than 350,000 children and around 550,000 working-age adults.
	The Department are also reforming the child maintenance system. It is our strong view that it is the best outcome for the children if separating parents make a collaborative family based agreement wherever possible. Through better co-ordinated and strengthened family support services and wider reforms, we will help and encourage parents to reach a collaborative arrangement. However for those parents who cannot make their own arrangement we will introduce a new statutory child maintenance service in 2012 to enable us to better calculate and collect money for children.
	Additionally, when preparing the 2011 Child Poverty Strategy, the Child Poverty Unit worked with the Office of the Children's Commissioner to get opinions from children and their parents as to what they thought the strategy should contain. This was published by the Children's Commissioner as “Consulting with Children and Young People on Child Poverty (2011)”.

Council Tax

Nick Raynsford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish the council tax benefit data published in Table 15a and Table 15b by his Department on 14 December 2011 at national aggregate level for each (a) local authority and (b) parliamentary constituency showing (i) council tax benefit recipients by age group and family type at September 2011 and (ii) council tax benefit recipients' average weekly award by age group and family type at September 2011. [R]

Steve Webb: A copy of the available information has been placed in the Library.

Disability Living Allowance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to his Department's consultation on disability living allowance, for what reasons the increase in the number of claimants of disability living allowance requires the allowance to be reformed.

Maria Miller: Reform of DLA is long overdue. The new personal independence payment will be designed to support disabled people and enable support to be targeted on those who face the greatest barriers to leading live full, active and independent lives.
	We want to create a benefit that is affordable and sustainable in the long term. The total number of people claiming disability living allowance has risen almost 30% in the last eight years, from 2.5 million to 3.2 million in 2010-11, almost three quarters of which is not attributable to demographics, and total DLA expenditure has increased over the same period by almost £3.4 billion (nearly 40% in 2011-12 prices.) If unreformed the number claiming DLA would rise to 3.5 million. The cost of this would be unsustainable. However this is only one of a number of factors underpinning reform.
	There is also no systematic process of reviewing whether awards remain correct and an over-reliance on self-assessment—only around 50% of applications for DLA are corroborated by medical evidence. In 2004-05 the National Benefit Review estimated that £630 million of incorrect payments were being made to individuals whose condition had changed. Equally concerning is that £190 million was not claimed despite individuals experiencing deteriorating conditions. It cannot be right that individuals receive incorrect awards, and our reforms will ensure awards are regularly reviewed in a proportionate way.

Disability Living Allowance

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will assess the findings of the report entitled Responsible Reform: A report on the proposed changes to Disability Living Allowance, published by Dr S J Campbell and other disability representatives; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Miller: I am aware of the publication of this report. I believe that the report seriously misrepresents the way the Department has carried out consultation and design of necessary reforms to disability living allowance. In particular the report fails to acknowledge the extensive work that the Department has done since the formal consultation on DLA reform ended nearly a year ago. We have also had ongoing meetings with disabled people and representative organisations and have just commenced a further, formal consultation of 15 weeks on revised assessment criteria as a result of the earlier informal consultation.
	These discussions have led to significant changes to our plans. For example, we will not be removing the mobility component from care home residents and we have decided that the qualifying period will be three months instead of six. We have also listened and made significant changes to the assessment criteria as a result of our engagement with disabled people and their organisations. These developments reflect our determination that the design and development of personal independence payment should be through active engagement with disabled people and their representative organisations.
	The case for reform is clear—DLA is confusing for individuals to understand, based on unclear criteria and often results in inconsistent awards. Expenditure is also far in excess of the initial estimated costs and it currently costs £12.6 billion. We need to ensure that the benefit is sustainable, and that it reflects the needs of disabled people today, rather than in the 1990s. Our reforms will ensure that support is targeted on those who face the greatest challenges to take part in everyday life.

Employer’s Liability

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2011, Official Report, column 908W, on employers liability, when he expects to make a final announcement on the status and funding arrangements of the Employers Liability Insurance Bureau.

Chris Grayling: I appreciate that the Government's response to the consultation is taking longer to publish than many had hoped. However the issues raised are complex and we remain in discussions with all stakeholders to make sure we get this right. We are still carefully considering all the issues and will bring forward our proposals in due course.

Employer’s Liability

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2011, Official Report, column 908W, on employers liability, which stakeholders (a) Ministers and (b) officials have met to discuss employer liability insurance since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: Since May 2010 the Minister for Welfare Reform, Lord Freud, has met with representatives from the Association of British Insurers and Zurich, Aviva and RSA Insurance to discuss the proposals in the public consultation, accessing compensation—supporting people who need to trace employers' liability insurance.
	Additionally he has had discussions with the Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK, the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, the Association of Run-Off Companies, the Financial Services Authority, the Financial Services Compensation scheme, the All Party Parliamentary Group on Health and Safety and a representative from the Trades Union Congress.
	DWP officials have met with the same groups of stakeholders as well as Resolute Management Services Ltd. They also chaired the annual meeting of the Employers' Liability Code of Practice Review Body.

Employment Schemes

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 16 January 2012, Official Report, column 594W, on employment schemes, for each individual contracted provider what the proportion was of jobseekers who started on the Flexible New Deal and entered employment up to (a) three months, (b) six months, (c) nine months and (d) 12 months after starting on the programme.

Chris Grayling: Flexible new deal providers were paid on the basis of a monthly service fee and payments for job outcomes both short-term (13 weeks in continuous employment) and sustained outcomes (26/30 weeks in employment). Participants stayed on the programme for up to 12 months although three month extensions were available.
	The following figures are based on participants who started prior to September 2010 and hence could have spent a year on the programme prior to contract termination. They show the percentage of participants with each flexible new deal provider who achieved a 13 week job outcome which started within x months of their entry to flexible new deal.
	
		
			 Percentage of FND participants who achieved Job Outcome which started by: 3 months 6 months 9 months 12 months 
			 A4e (5 contracts) 9 15 19 20 
			 Calder Holdings 11 16 19 21 
			 Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council 8 12 15 16 
			 EOS-Works Ltd 9 14 17 19 
			 Ingeus (2 contracts) 10 16 19 21 
			 Max Employment UK Ltd 13 20 25 27 
			 Pertemps People Development Group 12 19 23 25 
			 Remploy 10 16 19 21 
			 Seetec 9 14 18 20 
			 Serco (3 contracts) 10 16 19 21 
			 Skills Training UK Ltd 11 18 22 24 
			 The Wise Group 10 15 19 20 
			 TNG 12 18 21 23 
			 Working Links (4 contracts) 9 15 19 20 
			 Overall 10 16 19 21 
			 Source: Provider Referrals and Payment System Management Information (December 2011)

Employment: Care Industry

Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many jobs in the care industry were advertised in jobcentres in December 2011; and what proportion of these vacancies were filled.

Chris Grayling: The information requested is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is as follows:
	The number of care assistants and home carers vacancies notified for the month ending 2 December 2011 (commonly referred to as December 2011) for Great Britain was 35,879.

Industrial Health and Safety

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of health and safety rules relating to local events.

Chris Grayling: The Government are concerned to ensure that local events are not unnecessarily constrained by unnecessary health and safety regulations. These issues are taken further in the two Government reports, “Common Sense Common Safety”, published in 2010, and, “Good Health and Safety, Good for Everyone”, published in 2011.
	Additionally the Health and Safety Executive set up a Challenge Panel on 5 January 2012 to enable business to challenge specific health and safety regulatory advice. A second panel—to be set up later this year—will be available for those who wish to challenge claims made about health and safety requirements by non-regulators.

Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for industrial injuries disablement benefit have been made in each of the last four years; and how many were (a) awarded on first application, (b) awarded after an internal review and (c) awarded after a First Tier Tribunal hearing.

Chris Grayling: The information on claim numbers and assessments put into payment following internal reviews or following a First Tier Tribunal hearing is not available. The number of claims and payable assessments for the last four years is as follows:
	
		
			 IIDB claims and decision outcomes 
			  Claims received Decisions made Assessments not payable Assessments payable 
			 January to March 2011 8,190 9,480 1,800 3,670 
			 2010 41,740 58,590 15,570 23,650 
			 2009 63,840 41,440 8,020 14,720 
			 2008 35,050 33,070 5,560 12,160 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Payment for IIDB is dependent on the individual's level of disability. The threshold for payment of industrial injuries disablement benefit is a disablement assessment of 14%. A successful claim can be an assessment at 1% disablement, which would not of itself give rise to benefit. 3. There is a time delay between claims being made and first assessments taking place. Comparing claims and payable first assessments will give an estimated success rate only as decisions on claims submitted are not necessarily made in the same time period. For this reason the number of first assessments made in a year may exceed the number of claims made. Prescribed Disease A14 (Osteoarthritis of the knee in miners) was introduced from 13 July 2009. This resulted in a large number of claims, many of which did not receive first assessments until early 2010. This accounts for the apparent particularly large anomaly between numbers of claims and first assessments in 2009-10. 4. Includes claims to Prescribed Disease A11 under new regulations from 1 October 2007. 5. Information is published at: http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/iidb/index.php?page=iidb_quarterly_mar11

Pensions

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to increase the 25 pence per week pension increase payable to individuals aged 80 or older.

Steve Webb: In April 2011, we set out proposals for reform of the state pension system in a Green Paper "A State Pension for the 21(st) Century". This provides an opportunity to review all aspects of the state pension scheme, including elements such as the age addition, to ensure that any reformed system is affordable, sustainable and supports the needs of future pensioners; who will face different challenges in retirement than today's pensioners.

Pensions

Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the UK hold self-invested personal pensions; and what estimate has been made of their total value.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available because it is not collected from pension providers.
	Information about the number of people contributing to personal and stakeholder pensions and the value of their contributions can be found on the HMRC website in tables 7.4 and 7.5 at the following address:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/pensions/menu-by-year.htm
	Information about the total value of defined contribution pensions can be found in the Office for National Statistics publication "Wealth in Great Britain."

Social Security Benefits

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average total level of benefits received per household in receipt of benefits was in (a) Poplar and Limehouse constituency, (b) the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and (c) nationally in the latest period for which figures are available.

Chris Grayling: While information on DWP administered benefits is available at constituency level, we do not hold complete information on those benefits administered by other Government Departments and organisations. Restricting analysis to those benefits administered directly by DWP may present a misleading picture of benefit receipt. In addition, we estimate that developing an appropriate methodology and quality assuring any analysis of DWP administrative data would exceed disproportionate cost limits.
	According to the latest release of the Family Resource Survey (FRS), the median weekly household income from benefits and tax credits for households with at least one member in receipt of at least one benefit or tax credit in the United Kingdom in 2009-10 was £141. The sample size of the FRS is not large enough to provide robust estimates at the constituency or borough level.
	Notes
	1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest pound.
	2. The estimates are based on sample counts that have been adjusted for non-response using multi-purpose grossing factors that control for tenure type, council tax band and a number of demographic variables.
	3. Estimates are subject to sampling error and remaining non-sampling bias.
	4. The FRS is known to under-record benefit receipt. Please see table M6 of Chapter 7 of the latest publication for more information:
	http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/frs/2009_10/frs_2009_10_report.pdf
	5. These figures have not been adjusted to account for different household sizes.
	6. A household refers to a single person or group of people living at the same address as their only or main residence, who either share one meal a day together or share the living accommodation (i.e. a living room). A household will consist of one or more benefit units.

UK Law

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which EU (a) Directives, (b) Regulations and (c) other legislation affecting his Department require transposition into UK law; and what estimate he has made of the cost to (i) the public purse and (ii) the private sector of such measures.

Chris Grayling: The EU Directives affecting the Department for Work and Pensions and requiring transposition into UK law are as follows:
	Directive 2010/41/EU on the application of the principle of equal treatment between men and women engaged in an activity in a self employed capacity. This repeals council directive 86/613/EEC. Data is limited in this area but we estimate costs to the public purse to be less than £1 million per annum. The transposition is not expected to impose any costs on the private sector.
	Directive 2010/32/EU on the Framework Agreement on prevention from sharp injuries in the hospital and healthcare sector concluded by HOSPEEM and EPSU. This requires transposition by 11 May 2013. An impact assessment is being prepared, but costs to the private sector are likely to be low. As the directive relates to risks of injury to workers in the healthcare sector we anticipate that the majority of costs will fall to the NHS. Administrative costs of transposing the directive is estimated at around £140,000.

Unemployment: Immigration

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the Migration Advisory Committee's report on the link between immigration and unemployment.

Chris Grayling: No formal assessment has been made of the Migration Advisory Committee report, but I welcome the contribution the committee's work is making to our understanding of the role migration plays in the UK labour market.
	Its conclusions are consistent with the direction of government policies that are focused on bringing migration down to more sustainable levels. We are undertaking a radical shake up of the welfare system and investing to improve the skills of the existing UK work force. This will ensure that people are better prepared for, have more incentive and face more requirements to take up work, reducing the degree to which we rely on migrant workers.

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 14 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, what proportion of (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) physiotherapists were assessed as (i) A-grade, (ii) B-grade, (iii) C-grade and (iv) D-grade, by region.

Chris Grayling: Healthcare Professionals (HCP'S) are not categorised in terms of A, B and C as some may have more than one audit undertaken.
	The results in respect of the audit data referred to in page 14 of the Government's response to Professor Harrington's second independent review of the work capability assessment are shown in the following table.
	It shows overall the number of reports for each practitioner type that achieved either an A, B, or C grade following audit.
	
		
			 Sum of count of audits 
			 Percentage 
			  Overall grade code 
			 Practitioner type A B C Grand Total 
			 Medical Adviser 71.5 24.8 3.7 100.0 
			 Registered nurse 70.2 25.0 4.8 100.0 
			 Registered physiotherapist 71.1 28.9 0.0 100.0 
			 Grand total 70.7 25.1 4.2 100.0 
		
	
	At Audit category D is not a recognised category.

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 14 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, how often each Atos approved health care professional is subject to (a) auditing and (b) quality checking.

Chris Grayling: The frequency of audit/quality checking varies. For example, targeted audit is carried out where a quality, rework or complaint issue has been identified in order to establish whether there is evidence of an ongoing problem and the number of cases audited is determined by the health care professional's mentor or medical manager. However, as a minimum, the work of every health care professional in each benefit stream and function is audited six monthly on a rolling basis.

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 14 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, what proportion of (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) physiotherapists received more than one C-grade assessment.

Chris Grayling: In respect to the audited data referred to in page 14 of the Government's response to Professor Harrington's second independent review of the Work Capability Assessment the results are:
	
		
			  Percentage 
			 (a) Doctors 1.3 
			 (b) Nurses 1.1 
			 (c) Physiotherapists 0

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 16 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, what proportion of (a) employment and support allowance (ESA) claimants fail to return the initial ESA50 questionnaire, (b) ESA claimants fail to attend the Work Capability Assessment, (c) Work Capability Assessment decisions meet the criteria in the Decision Making Quality Assessment Framework, (d) reconsiderations are received, (e) decisions are changed following reconsideration, (f) appeals are received and (g) appeals are upheld.

Chris Grayling: As detailed in the Government's response, DWP will be using a wide range of indices and management information to monitor the impact of the changes introduced as a result of Professor Harrington's first independent review.
	Changes to the ESA process were introduced from October 2011 to better support claimants throughout the process, ensuring they understand what is required of them and why a particular decision has been made. Its is anticipated that these changes will result in a reduction in the rates of failure to return the initial ESA50 questionnaire; failure to attend the work capability assessment and appeals as well as improvements to decision making standards which may result in both less reconsiderations and decisions being overturned at appeal. However it is too early as yet to report any findings resulting from the changes in October.

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 19 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, if he will publish the results of his Department's monthly monitor of recruitment and retention of Atos-approved health care professionals.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions monitors on a monthly basis the recruitment and retention of Atos-approved health care professionals.
	At the monthly Executive Management Board (EMB) Atos Healthcare provide DWP with a report detailing recruitment, attrition, and capacity.
	However the information contained within this report is commercial in confidence. It cannot be released as release of the information would prejudice the interests of Atos Healthcare and the Department's future dealings with Atos Healthcare or other service providers.

Work Capability Assessments

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 20 of the Government's response to Professor Malcolm Harrington's Second Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment, when he last met the UK Drug Policy Commission to discuss the support offered to employment and support allowance claimants with drug and alcohol misuse-related conditions.

Chris Grayling: The Minister for Disabled People, my hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller), and I met with representatives from the UK Drug Policy Commission on 26 January 2011 at which the discussion included various methods of providing support both in work and in the transition back into employment to people with drug and alcohol misuse-related conditions.
	As part of Second Independent Review Professor Harrington met with the UK Drug Policy Commission, and as set out in our response to Professor Harrington we have committed to engage with the UK Drug Policy Commission and other relevant experts during 2012 as part of implementing his recommendations.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what mechanism he has put in place to alert his Department to potential prime provider failure on the Work programme.

Chris Grayling: The Department has set minimum performance standards for Work programme providers and we will use internal job outcome information to provide early warning of any potential failure to deliver these standards.
	Minimum standards have been set for each of the main participant groups, requiring providers to deliver job outcome results that are at least 10% higher than would have been expected if those same groups had not joined the programme.
	We will intervene and take action, with the aim of improving performance, against providers who fail to meet the minimum standards. If those performance improvements are not achieved within a short timescale, action up to and including contract termination will be taken.
	In addition the Department will encourage ongoing competition by shifting market share from those who perform least well to the best performing provider in the contract package area.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the outcome data for the Work programme to be published in autumn 2012 will include the number of referrals to and outcome payments received by individual tier 1 and tier 2 providers in each contract package area.

Chris Grayling: Official statistics on Work programme referrals and attachments up to October 2011 will be published in February 2012. Statistics on job outcomes will be released from autumn 2012. DWP collects data at prime provider level and therefore the published statistics will report only to prime provider level for each contract.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total value is of Work programme contracts awarded to each individual prime provider.

Chris Grayling: Work programme funding for providers is based primarily on results. Total spend depends on performance. Our forecasts are for expenditure to be in the region of £3-5 billion over the life of contracts.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 16 January 2012, Official Report, column 600W, on work programme, which organisation he has commissioned to provide the independent evaluation of the Work programme.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions has commissioned a consortium led by the Institute for Employment Studies (IES) to undertake an independent evaluation of the Work programme. Evaluation work started in autumn 2011 and will conclude in 2014.